TD 


IS07 


DOCUMENTS 
DEPT. 


UC-NRLF 


' 

/ 

REPORT 

~3^ 

• 

UPON  THE 


CHICAGO  DRAINAGE  CANAT 


BY  THE 


INTERNATIONAL  WATERWAYS 
COMMISSION, 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT    PRINTING    OFFICE. 

1907. 


WAR  DEPARTMENT. 
Document  No.  293. 


DOCUMENTS 
DEPT. 


^INTERNATIONAL  WATERWAYS  COMMISSION, 

Toronto,  Ontario,  January  4->  1907. 

The  Honorable  SECRETARY  OF  WAR  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES, 
The  Honorable  MINISTER  OF  PUBLIC  WORKS  OF  CANADA: 

The  International  Waterways  Commission  has  the  honor  to  submit 
the  following  report  upon  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal: 

1.  The  headwaters  of  the  Illinois  River,  an  important  tributary  of 
the  Mississippi,  approach  within  10   miles   of  Lake   Michigan  near 
its  southerly  end,  where  stands  Chicago.     The  river,  called  here  the 
Des  Plaines,  is  separated  from  the  lake  by  a  low  and  narrow  divide 
running  nearly  north  and  south.     In  the  divide  are  two  depressions, 
about  8  miles  apart,  in  which  the  height  is  only  about  10  feet  above 
the  surface  of  the  lake.     The  area  eastward  of  the  divide  is  drained  by 
two  streams,  the  Chicago  and  the  Calumet  rivers,  which  empty  into 
Lake  Michigan. 

The  city  of  Chicago  was  originally  built  on  the  Chicago  River  and, 
although  it  is  now  spreading  into  the  Calumet  region,  it  was  for  many 

•years  drained  exclusively  b}T  the  Chicago  River,  and  its  principal  parts 
are  now  so  drained.  This  river  constitutes  the  main  sewer  of  Chicago. 
The  lake  furnishes  the  city's  water  supply.  To  prevent  the  pollution 
of  the  water  supply  by  sewage  has  always  been  the  most  important 
municipal  problem  with  which  Chicago  has  had  to  deal.  Its  solution 
has  from  a  very  early  day  been  found  in  diverting  a  part  of  the  river's 
flow  into  the  valley  of  the  Des  Plaines  through  the  most  northerly  of 
the  two  depressions  mentioned  above.  The  Illinois  and  Michigan 
Canal,  which  was  opened  to  navigation  in  1848,  was  at  once  utilized  for 
this  purpose,  and  all  subsequent  improvements  consisted  in  efforts  to 

.  .force  more  sewage  through  that  canal  until,  in  1889,  it  was  decided  to 
build  a  new  and  greatly  enlarged  channel  which  should  completely 
divert  the  Chicago  River  from  Lake  Michigan  and  draw  from  that 

i  lake  a  body  of  pure  water  large  enough  to  make  the  sewage  inoffensive 

fto  the  communities  by  whose  doors  it  must  pass. 

2.  Before  embarking  upon  this  work  the  city  in  1886  appointed  a 
^commission  of  three  engineers  "to  consider  and  report  on  any  and  all 

things  which  relate  to  the  matter  of  water  supply  and  drainage  of  the 
.J-uity  of  Chicago."     In  January,  1887,  the  commission  submitted  a 
report  to  the  mayor  and  city  council  of  Chicago   (copy  appended 
marked  A),  which  it  styled  a  preliminary  report.     It  intended  to  sub- 
mit an  additional  or  final  report  in  which  the  data  upon  which  its  con- 
clusions were  based  should  be  given  in  greater  detail,  but  such  addi- 
tional report  was  never  submitted.     After  remarking  that  "almost 
'  every  conceivable  way  of  dealing  with  these  questions  had  been  sug- 
gested and  in  some  form  applied  during  the  past  thirty  years,"  the 
commission  stated  that  "among  the  possible  methods  of  getting  rid  of 
Hhe  Chicago  sewage  there  are  but  three  that  have  been  deemed  worthy 

(l) 


I 


of  consideration,  namely,  a  discharge  into  Lake  Michigan,  a  disposal 
upon  land,  and  a  discharge  intocthe  main  river."  It  considered  the 
tirst  method  too  expensive,  involving  as  it  does  a  wide  separation 
between  the  outlets  of  the  sewers  and  the  intakes  of  the  water  supply. 
It  pronounced  the  second  inapplicable  to  the  metropolitan  district  as 
a  whole,  under  the  topographical  conditions  existing,  but  thought  that 
it  might  be  emplo}Ted  for  the  extreme  northern  and  southern  parts,  the 
latter  including-the  Calumet  region.  It  recommended  the  third  method. 
It  was  uncertain  as  to  the  quantity  of  water  required  to  dilute  the 
sewage  so  as  to  make  it  inoffensive,  but  in  order  to  prepare  an  esti- 
mate of  cost  it  was  compelled  to  assume  some  approximate  size  of 
channel,  and  it  did  assume  a  size  large  enough  to  discharge  600,000 
cubic  feet  per  minute,  that  being  the  estimated  amount  of  water  fail- 
ing upon  the  area  tributarjr  to  the  canal  during  storms  and  not  other- 
wise disposed  of.  It  includes  the  drainage  basins  of  the  upper  Des 
Plaines  and  of  the  Chicago  rivers,  but  not  that  of  the  Calumet  River. 
With  a  channel  of  less  dimensions  in  times  of  storms  and  floods  the 
Chicago  River  would  not  be  fully  diverted  into  the  Des  Plaines,  but 
would  back  up  into  Lake  Michigan.  The  result  was  a  supply  of  2-1,000 
cubic  feet  per  minute  for  each'  100,000  people  in  a  population  of 
2,500,000,  the  population  which  the  commission  thought  it  desirable 
to  provide  for,  and  the  opinion  was  expressed  that  this  would  equal 
the  maximum  requirements. 

3.  Following  this  report  the  Illinois  legislature  passed  an  act 
approved  May  29.  1889,  "to  create  a  sanitary  district  and  to  remove 
obstructions  in  the  Des  Plaines  and  Illinois  rivers,"  of  which  the  twenty- 
third  and  twenty-fourth  paragraphs  read  as  follows,  viz: 

Paragraph  23.  If  any  channel  is  constructed  under  the  provisions  hereof  by  means 
of  which  any  of  the  waters  of  Lake  Michigan  shall  be  caused  to  pass  into  the  Des 
Plaines  or  Illinois  rivers,  such  channel  shall  be  constructed  of  sufficient  size  and 
capacity  to  produce  and  maintain  at  all  times  a  continuous  flo\v  of  not  less  than 
300,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  minute,  and  to  be  of  a  depth  of  not  less  than  14  feet, 
and  a  current  not  exceeding  3  miles  per  hour,  and  if  any  portion  of  any  such 
channel  shall  be  cut  through  a  territory  with  a  rocky  stratum  where  such'  rocky 
stratum  is  above  a  grade  sufficient  to  produce  a  depth  of  water  from  Lake  Michigan 
of  not  less  than  18  feet,  such  portion  of  said  channel  shall  have  double  the  flowing 
capacity  above  provided  for,  and  a  width  of  not  less  than  160  feet  at  the  bottom 
capable  of  producing  a  depth  of  not  less  than  18  feet  of  water.  If  the  population  of 
the  district  draining  into  such  channel  shall  at  any  time  exceed  1,500,000,  such 
channel  shall  be  made  and  kept  of  such  size  and  in  such  condition  that  it  will  pro- 
duce and  maintain  at  all  times  a  continuous  flow  of  not  less  than  20,000  cubic  feet  of 
water  per  minute  for  each  100,000  of  the  population  of  such  district,  at  a  current  of 
not  more  than  3  miles  per  hour,  and  if  at  any  time  the  General  Government  shall 
improve  the  Des  Plaines  or  Illinois  rivers,  so  that  the  same  shall  be  capable  of 
receiving  a  flow  of  600,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  minute,  or  more,  from  said  channel, 
and  shall  provide  for  the  payment  of  all  damages  which  any  extra  flow  above 
300,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  minute  from  such  channel  may  cause  to  private  prop- 
erty so  as  to  save  harmless  the  said  district  from  all  liability  therefrom,  then  such 
sanitary  district  shall,  within  one  year  thereafter,  enlarge  the  entire  channel  leading 
into  said  Des  Plaines  or  Illinois  rivers  from  said  district  to  a  sufficient  size  and 
capacity  to  produce  and  maintain  a  continuous  flow  throughout  the  same  of  not  less 
than  600,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  minute,  with  a  current  of  not  more  than  3  miles 
per  hour,  and  such  channel  shall  be  constructed  upon  such  grade  as  to  be  capable  of 
producing  a  depth  of  water  of  not  less  than  18  feet  throughout  said  channel,  and  shall 
have  a  width  of  not  less  than  160  feet  at  the  bottom.  In  case  a  channel  is  con- 
structed in  the  Des  Plaines  River,  as  contemplated  in  this  section,  it  shall  be  carried 
down  the  slope  between  Lockport  and  Joliet  to  the  pool,  commonly  known  as 
the  upper  basin,  of  sufficient  width  and  depth  to  carry  off  the  water"  the  channel 
shall  bring  down  from  above.  The  district  constructing  a  channel  to  carry  water 
from  Lake  Michigan  of  any  amount  authorized  by  this  act  may  correct,  modify,  and 


remove  obstructions  in  the  Des  Plaines  and  Illinois  rivers  wherever  it  shall  be 
necessary  so  to  do  to  prevent  overflow  or  damage  along  said  river,  and  shall  remove 
the  dams  at  Henry  and  Copperas  Creek,  in  the  Illinois  River,  before  any  water  shall 
be  turned  into  the  said  channel.  And  the  canal  commissioners,  if  they  shall  find  at 
any  time  that  an  additional  supply  of  water  has  been  added  to  either  of  said  rivers  by 
any  drainage  district  or  districts,  to  maintain  a  depth  of  not  less  than  6  feet  from  any 
dain  owned  by  the  State  to  and  into  the  first  lock  of  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal 
at  La  Salle,  without  the  aid  of  any  such  dam,  at  low  water,  then  it  shall  be  the  duty 
of  said  canal  commissioners  to  cause  such  dam  or  dams  to  be  removed.  This  act 
shall  not  be  construed  to  authorize  the  injury  or  destruction  of  existing  water-power 
rights. 

Paragraph  24.  When  such  channel  shall  be  completed,  and  the  water  turned 
therein,  to  the  amount  of  300,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  minute,  the  same  is  hereby 
declared  a  navigable  stream,  and  whenever  the  General  Government  shall  improve 
the  Des  Plaines  and  Illinois  rivers  for  navigation,  to  connect  with  this  channel,  said 
General  Government  shall  have  full  control  over  the  same  for  navigation  purposes, 
but  not  to  interfere  with  its  control  for  sanitary  or  drainage  purposes. 

By  this  act  a  flow  of  not  less  than  20,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  is 
required  for  each  100,000  inhabitants  and  provision  is  made  for  a  popu- 
lation of  3,000,000.  The  evidence  before  the  legislative  committee 
which  framed  the  bill  as  to  the  quantity  required  was  contradictory. 
The  amount  fixed  for  dilution  of  the  sewage  was  a  minimum.  (See 
Appendix  B.) 

4.  Under  this  act  the  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  was  organized, 
embracing  all  of  the  city  north  of  Eight}^-seventh  street  and  some 
43  square  miles  of  Cook  County  outside  of  the  city  limits.     The  total 
area  of  the  district  was  185  square  miles,  and  did  not  include  the 
Calumet  region  nor  the  north  shore.     The  trustees  held  their  first 
meeting  January  18,  1890.     The  Chicago  Drainage  Canal  was  then 
constructed,  water  being  turned  into  it  for  the  first  time  in  January, 
1900.     It  was  not  then,  and  has  not  since,  been  completed  to  its  full 
capacity  as  designed.     In  places  where  the  excavation  was  in  rock 
the  full  dimensions  of  the  prism  were  taken  out,  but  in  earth  a  con- 
siderable  volume   was   left   to  be  removed  by  the  ejisy  method  of 
dredging  hereafter.     When  fully  completed  it  was  designed  to  have 
a  capacity  of  600,000  cubic  feet  per  minute,  or  10,000  cubic  feet  per 
second,  flowing  at  a  velocity  of  1.25  miles  per  hour  in  earth  and  1.9 
miles  per  hour  in  rock. 

5.  The  canal  is  28.05  miles  in  length.     For  a  distance  of  7.8  miles 
from  its  junction  with  the  Chicago  River  at  Robey  street  its  dimen- 
sions are  110  feet  width  at  bottom,  side  slopes  1  on  2,  depth  of  water 
22  feet  at  low  stage  of  Lake  Michigan,  with  a  grade  of  1  in  40,000,  the 
material  being  earth.     This  section  is  eventually  to  have  a  width  of 
200  feet  at  bottom. 

6.  For  a  farther  distance  of  5.3  miles,  although  the  material  is 
principally  earth,  the  dimensions  are  202  feet  width  at  bottom,  side 
slopes  1  on  2,  minimum  depth  of  water  22  feet,  with  a  grade  of  1  in 
40,000.     This  section  is  completed. 

7.  For  the  remaining  15.95  miles  the  canal  is  excavated  wholly  or 
partially  in  rock.     Where  the  natural  rock  does  not  come  to  the  sur- 
face walls  of  masonry  have  been  built  upon  the  rock  surface,  thus 
artificially  carrying  it  to  a  height  5  feet  above  datum.     The  dimensions 
here  are  160  feet  width  at  bottom,  162  feet  width  at  top,  minimum 
depth  of  water  22  feet,  with  a  grade  of  1  in  20,000.     This  section 
also  is  completed. 

8.  The  controlling  works  are  situated  near  the  town  of  Lockport  at 
the  western  end  of  the  canal.     They  consist  of  a  bear  trap  dam  160 


feet  wide,  with  a  vertical  play  of  IT  feet,  and  of  seven  sluice  gates  of 
the  Stoney  type,  each  30  feet  wide  and  having  a  vertical  play  of  20 
feet.  These  works  provide  a  very  efficient  means  of  controlling  the 
flow  of  water  through  the  canal. 

9.  The  project  of  the  sanitary  district  for  the  disposal  of  sewage  by 
the  canal  when  completed  is  briefly  as  follows:  All  sewers  will  dis- 
charge into  the  Chicago  River,  either  directly  or  through  intercepting 
sewers.     From  the  mouth  in  Lake  Michigan  to  the  point  where  the 
North  and  South  branches  unite  the  river  will  flow  8,000  cubic  feet  per 
second,  less  such  quantity  as  may  be  pumped  into  the  upper  portion 
of  the  North  Branch,  which  under  the  original  project  was  200  cubic 
feet  per  second  admitted  through  a  conduit  at  Fullerton  avenue.    From 
this  point  the  combined  flow  will  be  8,000  cubic  feet  to  the  point  where 
the  South  Fork  enters  the  South  Branch,  where  it  will  be  increased  to 
10,000  cubic  feet  by  water  pumped  from  Lake  Michigan  at  Thirty- 
ninth  street  and  flowing  through  a  large  conduit  in  Thirty-ninth  street 
to  the  South  Fork.    The  volume  which  will  finally  enter  the  canal  under 
this  project  will  be  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second. 

10.  The  channel  of  the  Chicago  River  is  not  large  enough  to  trans- 
mit that  volume  from  the  lake  to  the  canal  except  at  velocities  which 
are  an  obstruction  to  navigation.     The  amount  which  the  Secretary 
of  War  has  thus  far  permitted  the  sanitary  district  to  pass  through 
the  river  is  4,167  cubic  feet  per  second.     In  order  to  obtain  authority 
for  a  larger  amount  the  trustees  have,  undertaken  to  enlarge  the  chan- 
nel of  the  river  and  have  accomplished  a  large  amount  of  work  in  that 
direction. 

11.  By  act  of  the  Illinois  legislature  in   1903  the  sanitary  district 
was  enlarged  by  annexing  thereto  the  north  shore  district,  containing 
78.6  square  miles,  and  the  Calumet  district,  containing  94.48  square 
miles.     The  total  area  of  the  sanitary  district  is  therefore  now  358.08 
square  miles.     The  same  legislature  authorized  the  development  of 
the  water  power  created  by  the  diversion. 

12.  The  plans  for  the  north  shore  region  involve  two  additional  con- 
duits from  the  lake  to  the  North  Branch  of  the  Chicago  River,  one  at 
Lawrence  avenue,  into  which  583  cubic  feet  per  second,  and  one  at 
Wilmette,  into  which  1,000  cubic  feet  per  second,  are  to  be  pumped. 
As  this  water  is  to  form  a  part  of  the  10,000  cubic  feet  originally  to 
be  taken  out  through  that  river,  it  does  not  add  to  the  amount  of  water 
to  be  taken  from  Lake  Michigan. 

13.  The  plans  for  the  Calumet  region  involve  a  treatment  of  the 
Calumet  River  similar  to  that  of  the  Chicago  River.     The  river  is  to 
be  diverted  into  the  Des  Plaines  Valley.     For  this  purpose  a  new  chan- 
nel is  to  be  cut  through  the  southerly  depression  in  the  divide,  and  to 
join  the  present  drainage  canal  at  Sag,  about  11  miles  from  the  con- 
trolling works  at  Lockport.     From  Sag  to  Lockport  the  drainage  canal 
must  carry  the  flow  from  the  Calumet  River  in  addition  to  that  from  the 
Chicago  River.     It  was  designed  to  accommodate  the  latter  river  alone, 
or  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second,  but  improved  methods  of  excavation, 
particularly  channeling  in  rock,  gave  it  a  greater  capacity  than  was 
computed;  and  the  hydraulic  formula  with  which  its  dimensions  were 
figured,  being  adapted  to  smaller  streams,  gave  results  which  proved 
to  be  too  large.     It  is  found  that  the  portion  completed  in  rock,  which 
includes  the  reach  from  Sag  to  Lockport,  will  carry  an  amount  stated 
by  the  chief  engineer  to  be  14,000  cubic  feet  per  second.     The  differ- 


ence,  4,000  cubic  feet  per  second,  is  the  amount  which  it  is  proposed 
to  divert  from  the  Calumet  River.  For  this  purpose  it  is  proposed  to 
excavate  a  channel  having  in  earth  a  bottom  width  of  72  feet,  with 
side  slopes  3  on  5,  and  in  rock  a  bottom  width  of  90  feet  with  vertical 
sides,  the  depth  in  both  cases  to  be  25  feet. 

14.  Work  in  the  territory  annexed  in  1903  has  been  limited  to  sur- 
veys, and  the  preparation  of  plans,  and  the  expenditures  in  that  terri- 
tory have  been  small.     The  amount  expended  upon  the  drainage  canal 
and  accessory  works,  including  the  above,  to  December  31,  1905,  is 
$40,873,629.71;  in  addition  to  which  $1,556,226.56  has  been  expended 
for   the  development  of   water  power  and  $7,290,101.27   has  been 
paid  out  for  interest.     For  a  financial  statement  more  in  detail,  see 
Appendix  C. 

15.  Although  the  primary  object  of  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal  was 
the  discharge  of  Chicago  sewage  its  function  as  a  channel  for  naviga- 
tion was  kept  in  view  from  the  beginning.     All  of  the  bridges  over  it 
are  draw  bridges  with  ample  openings.     A  provision  of  this  kind,  as 
well  as  the  care  exercised  to  make  the  sewage  inoffensive  by  liberal 
dilution,  was  necessary  to  conciliate  the  interests  in  the  valley  of  the 
Des  Plaines  and  Illinois  rivers,  which  would  otherwise  be  adversely 
affected.     It  can  hardly  be  doubted  that  the  canal  will  eventually  form 
a  part  of  an  improved  waterway  between  the  Great  Lakes  and  the 
Mississippi  River,  though  its  full  depth  will  probably  not  be  required 
for  that  purpose.     Congress  has  not  adopted  any  scheme  for  this  im- 
provement, but  by  its  direction  a  survey  was  made,  and  plans  with  esti- 
mates for  a  waterway  14  feet  deep  were  submitted,  by  a  board  of  engi- 
neers in  a  report  dated  August  26,  1905.     The  board  found  that  for  a 
distance  of  about  100  miles  from  Chicago  the  improvement  must  be  with 
locks  and  dams,  and  as  the  quantity  of  water  required  would  be  merely 
that  needed  for  the  service  of  locks  and  other  incidentals,  the  extent  of 
the  improvement  or  depth  which  could  be  obtained  in  that  part  of  the 
route  was  without  limit  so  far  as  it  depended  upon  the  amount  of  water 
available.     For  the  remaining  distance,  about  223  miles,  the  improve- 
ment would  be  an  enlargement  of  the  open  channel  and  the  degree  to 
which  it  was  practicable  was  entirely  dependent  upon  the  quantity  of 
water  flowing.     The  board  assumed  that  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal 
would  eventually  be  permitted  to  take  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second  from 
Lake  Michigan,  and  it  expressed  the  opinion  that  with  that  volume 
added  to  the  natural  low-water  discharge  of  the  Illinois  River  a  depth 
of  14  feet  in  the  open  channel  could  be  maintained;  also  that  if  a  much 
greater  depth  was  to  be  secured  a  much  larger  volume  of  water  must 
be  taken  from  Lake  Michigan. 

16.  In  the  neighborhood  of  Lockport  the  natural  level  of  the  ground 
falls  away  rapidly  and  excellent  facilities  are  found  for  the  develop- 
ment of  water  power.     Under  the  State  legislation  of  1903  the  sani- 
tary district  is  now  engaged  in  utilizing  this  incidental  advantage  of 
the  drainage  canal.     The  plans  provide  for  an  extension  of  the  canal 
10,700  feet  between  concrete  walls  and  earth  and  rock  embankments 
to  the  site  selected  for  the  power  house  and  for  the  excavation  of  a 
tail  race  6,800  feet  long,  160  feet  wide,  and  22  feet  deep.     If  the  max- 
imum quantity  of  water  which  the  sanitary  distilct  now  claims  to  be 
necessary  for  sanitary  purposes — 14,000  feet  per  second— be  utilized  it 
will  be  possible  to  develop  about  40,000  electrical  horsepower  under 
a  head  of  34  feet.     With  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second  about  28,000 


horsepower  can  be  developed.  A  power  house  is  being  erected  which 
will  accommodate  8  turbines,  each' capable  of  generating  5,000  horse- 
power. 

17.  The  sanitary  district  has  acquired  land  on  both  sides  of  the  canal 
throughout  its  length,  the  width  of  the  strips  varying  from  200  to  800 
feet.     This  land  is  offered  to  manufacturers  at  moderate  prices,  and  it 
seems  probable  that  they  will  in  the  course  of  time  be  attracted  thereto, 
particularly  after  arrangements  for  furnishing  them  with  cheap  power 
from  Lockport  are  completed. 

18.  The  diversion  of  large  bodies  of  water  from  Lake  Michigan  for 
supplying  the  drainage  canal  has  not  been  authorized  by  Congress. 
The  plans  of  the  sanitary  district,  except  those  for  the  enlargement  of 
the  Chicago  River,  have  not  been  submitted  to  any  Federal  authority 
for  approval.     It  was  only  after  the  opening  of  the  canal  that  applica- 
tion was  made  to  the  Secretary  of  War  for  permission  to  divert  the 
quantity  of  water  required  by  the  State  law.     The  Secretary  granted 
permission  for  such  quantity  as  would    pass  through  Chicago  River 
without  detriment  to  navigation,  a  quantity  considerably  less  than  that 
required  by  the  State  law.    After  experimenting  with  various  amounts 
it  was  fixed  at  250,000  cubic  feet  per  minute,  or  4.167  cubic  feet  per 
second,  and  that  is  the  amount  now  authorized.     It  is  "  subject  to  such 
modification  as,  in  the  opinion  of  the  Secretary  of  War,  the  public 
interests  may  from  time  to  time  require/'     Copies  of  all  the  permits 
granted  by^  the  Secretary  of  War  in  this  connection  will  be  found  in 
Appendix  D. 

19.  In  the  expenditure  of  $40,000,000  for  the  drainage  canal  the 
people  of  Chicago,  with  its  population  of  2,000,000,  incurred  a  burden 
equivalent  to  that  due  to  an  expenditure  of  $1,600,000,000  by  the 
United  States,  with  its  population  of  80,000,000 — that  is,  enough  to 
build  eight  or  more  Panama  canals.     It  was  a  very  serious  effort  and 
has  commanded  the  admiration  and  sympathy  of  all  observers.     The 
diversion  of  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second  from  Lake  Michigan  affects 
other   interests   adversely,   but   these   interests   have  withheld  their 
opposition,  seeming  to  believe  that  some  such  amount  was  necessary, 
and  apparently  willing  to  contribute  their  share  to  protect  the  lives 
and  health  of  the  people  of  a  great  cit}T.     The  plans  calling  for  that 
amount  have  been  under  public  discussion  for  some  years.     Although 
withholding  formal  approval,  the  Federal  authorities  have  taken  no 
steps  to  prevent  their  execution.     Congress  has  called  for  a  plan  and 
estimates  for  an  improvement  of  the  waterways  connecting  with  it,  the 
scope  of  which  is  fixed  by  that  amount.     There  appears  to  be  a  tacit 
general  agreement  that  Chicago  needs  or  will  need  about  10,000  cubic 
feet  of  water  per  second  for  sanitary  purposes  and  that  the  city  should 
have  it  without  further  question. 

20.  It  was  not  generally  known  until  after  the  publication  in  March 
last  of  the  report  of  the  American  section  of  this  Commission  upon 
Niagara  Falls  that  an  amount  greater  that  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second 
would  be  asked  for.     In  that  report,  subsequently  concurred  in  b}T  the 
Canadian  section,  it  was  recommended  that  the  diversion  of  10,000 
cubic  feet  be  allowed.     The  preservation  of  Niagara  Falls  alone  was 
considered,  and  that  in  the  light  of  the  tacit  agreement  above  described. 
Jt  was  supposed  at  the  time  that  this  was  all  that  Chicago  needed,  but 
the  recommendation  gave  offense  to  the  officials  of  the  sanitary  district, 
and  the  further  demand  then  came  out  in  the  form  of  appeals  to  the 


committees  of  Congress  and  to  the  Secretary  of  State.  It  is  necessary 
now  to  take  up  the  question  anew,  and,  after  considering  it  in  all  its 
bearings,  to  reach  some  conclusion  as  to  whether  there  should  be  a 
limit  to  the  amount  of  water  to  be  diverted  at  Chicago,  and,  if  so,  as  to 
what  that  limit  is. 

21.  That  the  abstraction  of  water  from  Lake  Michigan  has  a  tendency 
to  lower  the  level  of  that  lake  and  of  all  the  waters  to  which  it  is  tribu- 
tary is  self-evident;  but  the  exact  effect  of  abstracting  a  given  amount 
can  be  ascertained  only  from  prolonged  observation  of  the  natural  out- 
lets under  the  varying  conditions  to  which  they  are  subjected  during 
a  series  of  years.  An  elaborate  investigation  of  this  subject  was  made 
under  the  office  of  the  United  States  Lake  Survey  in  Detroit,  the  results 
of  which  were  published  in  the  annual  reports  of  the  Chief  of  Engineers 
for  1900,  page  5401;  for  1902,  pages  2779  and  2825;  and  for  1904,  page 
4120.  Further  observations  are  needed  to  be  made  when  the  difference 
of  level  between  Lake  Erie  and  Lake  Huron  is  greater  or  less  than 
when  the  existing  observations  were  made,  but  the  results  obtained 
from  the  latter  'are  believed  to  be  reliable  within  one-tenth  of  a  foot. 
The  amounts  by  which  the  mean  level,  as  derived  from  observations  of 
the  last  forty-six  years,  of  the  various  waters  will  be  lowered  by  a  dis- 
charge of  10,000  and  also  by  14,000  cubic  feet  per  second  are  given  in 
the  following  table: 


Location. 

Water   level    lowered 
by  diversion  at  Chi- 
cago of— 

10,000  cubic 
feet  per 
second. 

14,000  cubic 
feet  per 
second. 

Lakes  Huron  and  Michigan  

Inch. 
0.52 
.45 
.45 
.35 
.40 

Inch. 
0.70 
.64 
.64 
.49 
.56 

Lake  St.  Clair  

Lake  Erie  

Lake  Ontario  

St.  Lawrence  River  at  Rapide  Plat  

From  this  table  it  appears  that  all  the  waters,  including  Lakes 
Michigan  and  Huron,  Lake  St.  Clair,  Lake  Erie,  Lake  Ontario,  and  the 
St.  Lawrence  River,  besides  the  important  connecting  channels,  the 
Detroit  and  St.  Clair  rivers,  will  be  lowered  by  amounts  varying  from 
4i  to  6i  inches  for  10,000  cubic  feet  and  from  6  to  8£  inches  for 
14,000  cubic  feet  per  second.  The  length  of  time  required  to  produce 
this  effect  is  about  five  years;  about  half  of  it  will  be  produced  at  the 
end  of  eighteen  months.  The  above  figures  give  the  effect  at  average 
level;  they  are  much  more  considerable  during  low-water  periods. 

22.  Variations  in  the  level  of  the  lakes'  surface,  due  to  winds  and  to 
change  of  barometric  pressure,  are  frequent  and  irregular  and  at  times 
violent.  Variations  of  more  than  6  inches  are  very  common,  often 
occurring  hourly  for  many  hours  in  succession,  while  variations  of  2 
or  3  feet  within  an  hour  are  not  uncommon.  Besides  these  irregular 
variations  there  is  a  regular  annual  variation  due  to  difference  in  rain- 
fall, evaporation,  and  run-off,  the  water  level  being  highest  in  mid- 
summer and  lowest  in  midwinter.  The  levels  are  affected  also  by  the 
greater  or  less  severity  of  the  winter  and  the  consequent  greater  or 
less  decrease  in  the  discharging  capacity  of  the  outlets  by  ice.  In 
order  to  study  the  annual  oscillations  it  is  necessary  to  eliminate  the 
18819—07 2 


irregular  oscillations,  and  that  is  accomplished  by  usino-  the  average 
levels  for  a  month.  Using  the  monthly  mean  levels  it  is  found  that 
the  regular  fluctuation  in  Lake  Huron-Michigan  usually  does  not 
exceed  i;  feet  in  any  one  year,  but  in  a  long  series  of  years  there  is  a 
great  difference  in  the  height  to  which  high  water  will  rise.  The 
highest  high  water  (monthly  mean)  recorded  for  that  lake  was  in  June, 
1880,  and  the  lowest  high  water  in  June,  1896,  the  difference  between 
the  two  being  over  3i  feet.  The  first  is  what  navigators  of  the  Great 
Lakes  call  a  high-water  year  and  the  second  a  low-water  year. 

23.  It  is  evident  that  the  average  level  of  the  lake  may  be  lowered 
considerably  without  the  change  becoming  immediately  apparent,  and 
that  fact  has  been  used  as  an  argument  to  prove  that  the  lowering 
caused  by  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal  is  of  no  consequence  to  those 
interested  in  navigation.     Since  they  can  not  see  it  they  will  not  know 
it  and  will  not  feel  it.     The  argument  is  fallacious.     It  is  true  that 
they  can  not  see  it  immediately,  but  they  will  soon  feel  it  and  will  know 
it  through  the  most  costly  means  of  acquiring  knowledge  —the  injury 
to  their  material  interests.      The  oscillations  will  remain  the  same  as 
before,  but  low  water  will  fall  lower  and  high  water  will  rise  less  high. 
The  average  draft  of  vessels  must  be  diminished  by  the  amount  that 
the  average  level  is  lowered  unless  the  depth  be  restored  by  remedial 
works. 

24.  The  most  important  lake  traffic  is  now  carried  on  in  large  freight 
carriers  which  are  loaded  down  to  the  greatest  draft  that  can  be  car- 
ried into  the  harbors  or  through   the  channels   between    the   lakes. 
With  the  depth  now  available  they  are  usually  loaded  to  a  draft  of 
about  19  feet,  but  careful  watch  is  kept  on  the  stage  of  the  waterways 
and  advantage  is  taken  of  any  temporary  increase  of  stage  to  load  the 
vessels  deeper.     In  the  modern  vessel  each  inch  of  increased  draft  adds 
about  100  tons  to  the  carrying  capacity.    To  lower  the  water  surface  6 
inches  is  to  reduce  the  capacity  of  the  vessel  about  600  tons.  If  the  freight 
rate  on  iron  ore  be  taken  at  55  cents  per  ton,  exclusive  of  the  cost  of 
loading  and  unloading,  and  the  number  of  trips  during  the  season  at 
22,  there  appears  a  loss  of  over  $7,000  for  the  season  for  each  vessel. 
The  number  of  vessels  navigating  the  Great  Lakes  which  draw  19 
feet  or  more  is  417,  and  their  tonnage  is  1,541,414  tons,  which  is  about 
three-quarters  of  the  total  tonnage  of  the  Great  Lakes.     It  is  a  con- 
servative estimate  that  the  loss  to  the  navigation  interests  resulting 
from  a  reduction  of  6  inches  in  the  depth  of  water  is  $2,500,000  per 
annum,  which,  capitalized  at  4  per  cent,  amounts  to  a  loss  of  $62,500,000. 
With  a  greater  reduction  of  depth  the  resulting  loss  would  be  propor- 
tionately greater.     The  number  of  deep-draft  vessels  and  the  share  of 
lake  traffic  which  they  carry  is  increasing  each  year,  while  the  lake 
traffic  itself  is  increasing  with  marvellous  rapidity.     The  total  number 
of  tons  of  freight  which  passed  through  Detroit  River  in  1905  was 
about  58,000,000,  valued  at  about  $615,000,000.     The  records  for  the 
year  L906,  so  far  as  they  are  made  up,  indicate  that  the  number  of  tons 
which  passed  through  the  Detroit  River  in  1906  exceeded  65,000,000, 
valued  at  $690,000,000.     The  loss  will  be  even  greater  in  the  future 
than  it  is  now.      It  is  quite  certain  that  the  loss  will  not  pass  unnoticed, 
and  that  the  governments  will  be  compelled  to  restore  the  depth  either 
by  additional  excavations  or  by  regulating  works. 

25.  Careful  estimates  have  been  made  of  the  cost  of  deepening  the 
channels  between  the  lakes  1  foot.     To  deepen  the  Detroit  River  is 


estimated  to  cost  $4,115,430.  In  Lake  St.  Clair  the  full  depth  of  the 
lake  is  now  utilized,  and  any  lowering  of  its  surface  involves  the  exca- 
vation of  an  artificial  channel  entirety  across  the  lake,  a  distance  of  18 
miles,  of  which  it  has  been  necessary  heretofore  to  artificially  deepen 
only  one-third.  To  deepen  the  channel  here  and  at  certain  shoal 
places  in  St.  Clair  River  and  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Huron  is  estimated 
to  cost  $1,080,720.  It  results  in  replacing  open  lake  navigation  by 
canal  navigation  for  a  distance  of  12  miles  in  Lake  St.  Clair,  a  decided 
disadvantage. 

2(>.  The  data  are  not  at  hand  for  an  accurate  estimate  of  the  cost  of 
restoring  the  depths  in  the  harbors  of  the  Great  Lakes,  but  an  approx- 
imation may  be  reached  from  a  consideration  of  the  cost  of  improve 
ments  heretofore  made.  The  depth  to  be  gained  being  small,  the  cost 
will  not  vary  largely,  whether  that  gain  be  a  few  inches  more  or  less. 
The  United  States  has  improved  35  harbors  on  Lakes  Michigan, 
Huron,  and  Erie,  and  has  expended  thereon  about  $20,000,000,  of 
which  about  one-quarter  was  for  maintenance.  The  average  increase 
of  depth  is  10  feet  and  the  cost  per  foot  of  increase  was  therefore 
about  $1.500,000,  but  as  the  cost  of  a  small  increase  would  be  much 
greater  per  foot  than  an  increase  of  10  feet,  and  as  several  harbors  on 
Lake  Ontario  are  to  be  added,  the  cost  per  foot  in  this  case  would 
probably  be  not  less  than  $2,000,000  for  harbors  in  the  United  States. 
The  Canadian  Government  has  improved  over  50  harbors  on  Georgian 
Bay,  Lakes  Huron,  St.  Clair,  Erie,  and  Ontario.  A  large  amount, 
say  $3,000,000,  must  be  added  for  increasing  the  depth  of  these  harbors. 

27.  The  depth  in  the  Welland  Canal  and  in  the  six  canals  employed 
to  overcome  rapids  in  the  St.  Lawrence  River  is  now  14  feet,  of  which 
every  inch  is  needed.     At  the  head  of  the  Cornwall  Canal  in  the  St. 
Lawrence  River  the  abstraction  of  14,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  sec- 
ond at  Chicago  will  lower  the  surface  about  6f  inches  at  mean  level 
and  much  more  at  low  water.     To  restore  the  depth  in  these  canals 
involves  the  reconstruction  of  all  the  end  locks  and  deepening  the 
approaches  thereto,  and  is  estimated  to  cost  12,500,000. 

28.  The  total  cost  of  restoring  the  depth  in  the  harbors  of  the  Great 
Lakes    and    the   channels   between   the   lakes   is   therefore    roughly 
$10,000,000,   and   of  restoring  it  in  the  Welland  and  St.  Lawrence 
canals  is  $2,500,000  additional,  or  $12,500,000  in  all. 

29.  The  shores  of  the  Great  Lakes  are  very  far  from  being  fully 
developed,  and  it  is  highly  probable  that  many  harbors  not  now  in 
existence  remain  to  be  created,  or  if  in  existence  remain  to  be  improved. 
The  lowering  of  the  lakes'  surface  increases  the  difficulty  and  cost  of 
such  improvements.    This  consideration  is  of  importance,  although  no 
money  value  can  now  be  given  it. 

30.  The  expenditure  of  the  sums  mentioned  above  will  restore  the 
depths  now  existing,  but  it  will  not  prevent  very  serious  annoyance 
to  the  navigation  interests  during  the  execution  of  the  work.     The 
time  required  will  be  several  years,  and  in  the  meantime  the  vast  com- 
merce of  the  Great  Lakes  will  be  hampered,  not  only  by  deficient  depth, 
but  also  by  the  occupation  of  the  channels,  already  crowded  with  com- 
merce, by  the  excavating  machines. 

31.  It  is  evident  from  the  foregoing  that  large  bodies  of  water  can 
not  be  diverted  by  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal  without  very  serious 
detriment  to  the  navigation  interests  of  the  Great  Lakes  and  of  the 
St.  Lawrence  Valley.     The  greater  the  amount  of  water  diverted  the 


10 

greater  the  injury.  Chicago  being  one  of  the  principal  lake  ports, 
there  will  be  very  few  communities  which  will  feel  this  detriment 
more  than  she  will. 

32.  In  the  presence  of  these  interests  the  effect  upon  Niagara  Falls 
may  be  simply  mentioned  with  a  reference  to  our  former  reports  upon 
that  subject.     The  volume  of  Niagara  Falls  will  be  reduced  by  the  full 
amount  diverted  at  Chicago. 

33.  The  city  of  Chicago  was  organized  as  a  city  in  1837  with  a  popu- 
lation of  about  4,000.      Its  population  in   184<>  was   4,479;  in  1850. 
28,269;  in  I860,  112,172;  in  1870,  298,977;  in  1880,  503,185;  in  1890, 
1,099,850;  and  in  1900  it  was  1,698,575.      It  is  estimated  now  to  be 
about  2,000.000.     Should  the  rate  of  growth  continue  which  prevailed 
between  1880  and  1900,  the  population  will  be  3,000,000  in  the  year 
1922  and  4,000,000  in  the  year  1939.     It  is  impossible  to  foretell  its 
future  growth,  but  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  that  it  will  in  time 
greatly  exceed  the  largest  of  these  numbers.     The  city  is  the  com- 
mercial center  of  an  empire  still  in  its  infancy.     It  is  entirely  reason- 
able to  expect  a  population  of  live  or  six  millions  or  more.     It  will 
cover  territory  not  now  covered.     Methods  of  sewage  disposal  appro- 
priate to  one  portion  of  it  may  not  be  appropriate  to  other  portions. 
If  the  diversion  of  20,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  (or  333^  cubic  feet  per 
second)  for  each  100,000  of  population,  as  required  by  the  State  law, 
is  accepted  as  the  standard,  then  from  17,000  to  20,000  cubic  feet  per 
second  will  be  required,  and  the  14,000  cubic  feet  now  contemplated 
will  not  be  sufficient.     Even  more  than  20,000  cubic  feet  will  be  required 
for  a  population  greater   than  6,000,000.     The  diversion  of  20,000 
cubic  feet  per  second  would  lower  Lakes  Michigan  and  Huron  about 
13  inches  and  Lake  Erie  about  11  inches.     Plans  which  lead  to  this 
result  should  be  carefully  scrutinized. 

34.  One  of  the  reasons  given  in  1889  for  adopting  this  method  of 
disposing  of  Chicago  sewage  was  that  it  offered  the  advantage  of  fur- 
nishing a  navigable  waterway  from  Chicago  to  the  Mississippi  River. 
The  navigable  depth  or  capacity  of  such  a  waterway  has  never  been 
authoritatively  fixed.     Congress  has  considered  a  depth  of  14  feet  to 
the  extent  of  ordering  a  survey  and  estimates  of  cost  for  that  depth, 
but  the  Illinois  legislature  has  declared  its  policy  to  be  to  secure  the 
construction  of  a  deeper  channel,  not  limiting  its  proposed  capacity  in 
terms,  but  denning  it  to  be  "of  the  greatest  practicable  depth  and  use- 
fulness for  navigation."    See  joint  resolutions  adopted  May  27,  1889, 
copy    omitting   preamble    hereto    appended,    marked  "E."     A   fair 
interpretation  of  this  language  gives  a  proposed  depth  of  20  feet,  that 
being  the  depth  required  to  accommodate  the  most  important  vessels 
now  navigating  the  Great  Lakes.     It  will  require  a  volume  of  water 
greater  than  the  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second  originally  contemplated. 

35.  The  amount  which  it  is  proposed  to  divert  from  the  Calumet 
River,  4,000  cubic  feet  per  second,  is  fixed  by  accident  rather  than  by 
design,  being  the  excess  which  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal  is  found 
capable  of  carrying  after  providing  for  the  10,000  cubic  feet  from  the 
Chicago  River,  for  which  it  was  originally  constructed.     It  is  certain 
that  no  greater  amount  than  4,000  cubic  feet  can  be  diverted  from  the 
Calumet  without  checking  the  flow  from  the  Chicago  River,  and  thus 
giving  relief  to  a  suburban  portion  of  the  city  at  the  expense  of  the 
richest  and  most  populous  centers. 

36.  It  is  equally  certain  that  the  diversion  of  4,000  cubic  feet  or  less 


11 

will  not  at  all  times  afford  the  desired  relief  to  the  Calumet.  In  the 
first  place  it  provides  for  a  population  of  only  1,200,000,  a  number 
which  will  in  all  probability  be  greatly  exceeded  at  a  day  not  remote. 
At  present  the  population  is  estimated  at  about  200,000,  but  for  the 
present  necessities  it  is  not  a  question  of  population,  but  of  drainage 
area  and  rainfall.  A  flood  discharge  of  the  Calumet  has  been  measured 
at  Riverdale,  about  10  miles  from  its  mouth,  of  about  13,300  cubic  feet 
per  second  from  a  drainage  area  of  about  700  square  miles,  and  even 
that  amount  may  at  times  be  exceeded.  The  total  drainage  area  of  the 
Calumet  region,  including  the  Sag  Valley,  is  about  825  square  miles, 
and  assuming  the  discharge  to  increase  in  proportion  to  the  area  the 
flood  discharge  to  be  provided  for  is  over  15,700  cubic  feet  per  second. 
The  diversion  of  only  4,000  cubic  feet  will  not  prevent  a  heavy  dis- 
charge into  Lake  Michigan  in  time  of  flood.  To  overcome  this  diffi- 
culty it  is  proposed,  if  suitable  legislation  can  be  secured,  to  divert  the 
upper  Calumet  into  Lake  Michigan  through  an  artificial  channel  to  be 
excavated  in  Indiana  about  "17^  miles  east  of  the  State  line.  Indiana 
has  not  authorized  such  diversion,  but  supposing  it  to  be  accomplished, 
there  will  still  be  times  when  the  discharge  from  the  drainage  area 
remaining  to  be  cared  for  by  the  canal,  238  square  miles,  will  exceed 
4,000  cubic  feet  per  second.  The  excess  must  enter  Lake  Michigan 
through  the  mouth  of  the  Calumet,  and  at  such  times  the  system  will 
fail.  Of  course  it  makes  no  provision  for  the  future  occupation  of 
the  upper  Calumet -region  and  the  pollution  of  the  lake  from  that 
source.  It  thus  appears  that  the  diversion  of  the  Calumet  River  as 
now  proposed  by  the  sanitary  district  will  not  be  complete  even  for 
the  present,  and  will  not  make  adequate  provision  for  the  future. 

37.  The  diversion  of  4,000  cubic  feet  per  second  provides  for  a 
population  of  1,200,000  by  the  standard  fixed  by  the  State  law.     The 
population  of  the  Calumet  region  is  now  about  200,000,  and  until  it 
reaches  1,200,000  only  a  part  of  the  flow,  will  be  needed  for  sanitary 
purposes  during  a  large  part  of  the  year;  but  the  channel  must  be 
there,  available  for  the  full  flow,  if  this  method  of  sewage  disposal  is 
to  be  useful  to  any  population,  however  small.     Likewise  the  channel 
from  the  Chicago  River  must  be,  as  it is.  large  enough  to  provide  for 
a  population  of  3,000,000,  whether  that  number  of  people  are  ever  to 
become  tributary  to  the  Chicago  River  or  not.     The  channels  having 
once  been  constructed,  any  reduction  of  flow  below  their  fullest  capacity 
is  a  dead  loss  to  the  water  power  dependent  upon  them.     It  has  been 
said  that  it  would  be  absurd  to  develop  water  power  at  the  cost  per 
horsepower  which  this  water  power  costs  if  the  drainage  canal  be 
included,  and  that  is  true.     But  being  given  the  channels,  it  would  not 
be  absurd  to  use  them  to  their  fullest  capacity.     The  Chicago  Drainage 
Canal  having  been  constructed  with  a  capacit}^,  as  it  turns  out,  of  14,000 
cubic  feet  per  second,  full  power  development  will  call  for  the  whole 
of  that  amount,  and  in  fact  power  works  are  now  under  construction 
at  Lockport  to  utilize  it.     Inasmuch  as  the  sanitary  requirements  by 
the  standard  fixed  in  the  State  law  are  only  6,667  cubic  feet  per  second 
for  the  present  population  of  2,000,000,  it  is  evident  that  power  develop- 
ment, incidental  though  it  be,  does  lead  to  demands  for  water  not 
required  for  sanitary  purposes. 

38.  It  remains  to  be  seen  whether  any  diversion,  complete  or  other- 
wise, is  necessary  to  preserve  the  health  of  Chicago.     Upon  this  point 
the  commission  sought  the  advice  of  two  eminent  sanitary  engineers— 


12 

Messrs.  Kudolph  Hering  and  George  \V.  Fuller — whom  it  instructed  as 
follows,  viz:  "To  examine  the  sanitary  situation  at  Chicago,  so  far  as  it  is 

affected  by  sewage  disposal,  and  to  report  whether  it  is  or  is  not  neces- 
sary to  the  health  of  the  city  to  extend  to  outlying  territory  the  system 
which  was  adopted  in  1S$9  for  the  main  city.  The  commis- 

sion desires  an  emphatic  opinion  from  authoritative  sources  as  to 
whether  the  system  of  diverting-  the  water  of  Lake  Michigan  in  large 
quantities  into  the  Illinois  Valley  is  the  only  way  to  preserve  the  lives 
and  health  of  the  people  of  Chicago.  It  does  not  desire  an  investiga- 
tion of  the  effect  upon  the  navigation  interests  of  the  Great  Lakes. 
It  has  satisfied  itself  upon  that  point.  Nor  does  it  wish  to  reopen  the 
CUM'  of  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal  as  designed  and  built.  It  accepts 
that  as  a  tixed  fact,  with  its  attendant  diversion  of  10,000  cubic  feet 
per  second  through  the  Chicago  River.  The  extension  of  the  system 
to  the  Calumet  River  alone  is  in  question,  and  the  question  is,  Are 
there  not  other  methods  of  sewage  disposal  which  can  be  applied  here 
at  a  cost  not  exceeding  much,  if  at  all.  the  cost  of  the  method  pro- 
posed, and  which  will  be  equally  effective  in  preventing  the  pollution  of 
the  lake?  It  desires  a  report  upon  the  various  systems  which  may  be 
found  available  for  application  here,  with  a  statement  of  their  relative 
efficiency.  It  also  desires  a  statement  of  their  relative  cost,  so  far  as 
that  can  be  given  without  the  preparation  of  detailed  plans.  The  lat- 
est conclusions  of  sanitary  engineers  as  to  the  amount  of  dilution  which 
is  required  to  make  sewage  inoffensive  should  be  given."  These  gen- 
tlemen visited  Chicago,  and  after  a  thorough  examination  of  the  situa- 
tion submitted  a  report,  of  which  a  copy  is  hereto  appended,  marked 
"F."  The  entire  report  should  be  carefully  studied.  Its  conclusions 
only  are  here  quoted.  They  are  as  follows,  viz: 

The  latest  conclusions  of  sanitary  engineers  as  to  the  amount  of  dilution  which 
is  required  to.  make  sewage  inoffensive  are  that  a  dilution  of  3J  cubic  feet  per  second 
for  each  1,000  persons  connected  with  the  sowers,  as  provided  for  in  the  enactment 
of  the  Illinois  legislature  in  1889,  is  as  low  a  figure  as  it  is  now  possible  to  state. 
We  believe  that  with  the  elimination  of  objectionable  trade  wastes  and  the  occa- 
sional dredging  of  the  river  this  amount  of  dilution  will  be  sufficient  to  prevent 
offensive!)' 

The  extension  of  the  dilution  method  to  the  outlying  territory  is  not  the  only  way 
to  preserve  the  lives  and  health  of  the  people  of  Chicago.  The  application  of  this 
method,  with  flow  of  10,000  and  14,000  cubic  feet  per  second,  respectively,  for  the  area 
tributary  to  the  present  drainage  canal,  will  serve  populations  not  exceeding  3,000,000 
and  4,200,000,  respectively.  For  greater  populations  other  methods  of  towage  dis- 
posal will  be  required. 

For  the  Calumet  area,  as  well  as  other  districts,  there  are  several  methods  for  the 
disposal  of  sewage  as  effective  as  the  present  method  of  dilution  in  preventing  the 
pollution  of  the  lake  waters. 

All  these  methods  involve  intercepting  sewers  and  pumping  stations  to  collect 
and  deliver  the  sewage  at  suitable  sites.  Septic  tanks  are  used  for  partially 
clarifying  the  sewage,  which  may  then  be  applied  to  any  one  of  three  methods 
of  filters,  viz,  intermittent  sand  filters,  contact  filters,  and  sprinkling  filters. 

All  of  these  filters  if  well  built  and  well  managed  remove  the  suspended  and 
organic  matters  so  that  the  effluents  are  practically  clear  and  nonputrescible. 
The  removal  of  bacteria  by  these  three  types  of  filters  averages  at  least  98,  80, 
and  90  per  cent,  respectively.  Such  effluents  may  be  discharged  into  any  of  the 
water  <•  •  iii-M^  of  the  Calumet  region. 

The  approximate  total  costs,  liberally  estimated,  without  the  preparation  of 
detailed  plans,  for  a  population  of  1,200,000  are  as  follows : 

A. — Intermittent  Band  filters. 

Construction $11,  063,  000 

Annual  cost  of  operation,  $866,000,  capitalized  at  5  per  cent 17,320,000 


28,  383,  000 


13 

B.— Contact  filters. 

Construction    __.  $11,787,500 

Annual  cost  of  operation,  $551,000,  capitalized  at  5  per  cent 11,  020,  000 


22,  807,  500 

C.— Sprinkling  filters. 

Construction  ' 9,  257,  500 

Annual  cost  of  operation,  $419,000,  capitalized  at  5  per  cent 8,  380,  000 


17,  637,  500 

The  present  population  on  the  Calumet  area  of  the  sanitary  district  being 
less  than  200,000  would  naturally  require  but  a  portion  of  the  cost  of  estimated 
works  and  of  their  operation  to  be  expended  at  the  outset. 

Of  the  available  methods  of  disposing  of  the  sewage  of  the  Calumet  area 
other  than  by  dilution,  the  sprinkling  filter  method,  being  the  cheapest  both  in 
cost  of  construction  and  of  operation  and  accomplishing  an  adequate  degree 
of  purification,  is  clearly  the  most  advantageous  one. 

These  engineers  stand  in  the  front  rank  of  their  profession  as  sani- 
tary experts.  One  of  them,  Mr.  Hering,  was  chairman  of  the  com- 
mission of  1887,  whose  report  to  the  mayor  and  city  council  of 
Chicago  was  the  foundation  of  the  subsequent  legislation  and  led  to 
the  construction  of  the  drainage  canal.  The  conclusions  reached  are 
those  of  friends  of  Chicago,  and  not  of  her  enemies  or  rivals. 

39.  A  method  of  sewage  disposal  for  the  Calumet  region  is  pro- 
posed which  for  a  population  of  1,200,000  is  estimated  to  cost  $17,- 
637,500.     For  the  present  population  of  about  200,000  only  a  part  of 
the  expense  need  be  incurred,  and  the  works  can  be  developed  as  the 
population  increases.     It  can  when  the  necessity  arises  be  applied 
with  a  population  much  exceeding  1,200,000.     The  cost  of  diverting 
the  Calumet  River  into  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal  is  estimated  at 
$12,000.000.     The  greater  efficiency  at  present  and  in  the  future  of 
the  method  now  proposed  would  justify  a  considerable  increase  of 
cost,  but  in  view  of  the  fact  that  the  entire  expense  of  the  diversion 
must  be  incurred  at  the  outset,  while  by  the  new  method  the  expendi- 
tures will  be  regulated  by  the  growth  of  population,  the  difference  in 
cost  may  be  considered  unimportant. 

SUMMARY. 

40.  The  following  is  a  summary  of  the  more  important  facts  recited 
in  this  report : 

(a)  Chicago  obtains  its  water  supply  from  Lake  Michigan,  and  to 
avoid  polluting  it  must  either  dispose  of  its  sewage  otherwise  than  in 
the  lake  or  place  its  intakes  for  water  at  a  great  distance  from  the 
city. 

(b)  The  topography  of  the  country  favors  the  discharge  of  the 
sewage  into  the  Des  Plaines  River,  a  tributary  of  the  Mississippi, 
through  two  depressions  in  the  divide  which  separates  that  river 
from  Lake  Michigan. 

(c)  The  slope  on  the  lake  side  of  the  divide  is  drained  by  two 
streams,  the -Chicago  River  and  the  Calumet  River,  into  which  the 
sewers  of  the  city  empty.     By  a  cut  through  the  northerly  depression 
the  flow  of  the  Chicago  River  has  been  reversed  and  diverted  into 
the  Des  Plaines  River  instead  of  into  Lake  Michigan,  and  by  a  cut 


14 

through  thi'  southerly  depression  the  same  process  can  be  applied  to 
the  Calumet  River. 

(</)  To  make  this  reversal  effective  the  channels  must  be  large 
enough  to  take  all  the  water  which  falls  upon  the  respective  drainage 
areas  during  the  most  violent  rain  storms.  This  amount  is  estimated 
at  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second  for  the  Chicago  River  and  15,700 
cubic  feet  per  second  for  the  Calumet  River. 

(e)  The  city  of  Chicago  was  originally  built  upon  the  Chicago 
River,  and  that  stream  now  drains  the  richest  and  most  populous  part 
of  the  city.  It  is  now  spreading  over  the  Calumet  region. 

(/)  In  1889  the  plan  of  diverting  the  Chicago  River  into  the  valley 
of  the  Des  Plaines  was  definitively  adopted,  and  the  Chicago  Drain- 
age Canal  was  undertaken.  It  was  designed  to  carry  10,000  cubic 
feet  per  second.  Though  not  entirely  completed,  it  has  been  in  use 
since  January,  1900.  The  amount  expended  upon  the  canal  and 
accessory  work  is  about  $41,000,000. 

(g)  The  Illinois  law  which  authorized  the  canal  required  a  flow 
of  333  cubic  feet  per  second  for  each  100,000  of  population  in  order 
to  render  the  sewage  inoffensive.  This  amount  of  dilution  is  probably 
not  excessive.  It  is  reasonable  to  expect  a  population  in  a  future  not 
remote  of  five  or  six  millions  or  more,  involving  the  diversion  by  this 
standard  of  some  20,000  cubic  feet  per  second.  The  Chicago  River 
with  its  10,000  cubic  feet  provides  for  a  population  of  3,000,000. 
The  present  population  of  the  city  is  about  2,000,000. 

(h)  It  is  now  proposed  to  apply  to  the  Calumet  River  a  treatment 
similar  to  that  applied  to  the  Chicago  River,  viz.  to  reverse  its  flow; 
so  that  instead  of  discharging  into  Lake  Michigan  it  shall  discharge 
into  the  Des  Plaines.  but  for  a  part  of  the  new  route  it  must  follow 
the  drainage  canal  already  excavated  for  the  Chicago  River. 

(«')  Although  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal  was  designed  to  carry 
10,000  cubic  feet  per  second,  it  is  found  to  have,  in  its  completed 
rock  portion,  an  actual  capacity  of  14,000  cubic  feet.  This  additional 
capacity  fixes  the  amount  which  it  is  proposed  to  divert  from  the 
Calumet  at  4,000  cubic  feet  per  second.  Any  greater  amount  from 
the  Calumet  will  overtax  the  drainage  canal  at  the  expense  of  the 
richest  part  of  Chicago  and  for  the  benefit  of  a  suburban  part. 

(k)  The  diversion  of  only  4.000  cubic  feet  will  not  be  effective 
at  all  times,  since  a  much  greater  amount  must  be  diverted  from  the 
Calumet  during  heavy  rain  storms  if  the  lake  is  to  be  protected. 
Moreover,  it  provides  for  a  population  not  exceeding  1,200,000, 
which  number  will  probably  be  exceeded  at  a  date  not  far  distant. 

(1)  The  large  channels  necessary  to  provide  for  the  contingencies 
of  rain  storms  are  capable  of  discharging  a  volume  of  water  largely 
in  excess  of  sanitary  requirements  during  the  greater  part  of  the  year, 
but  the  development  of  water  power  creates  the  demand  that  they  be 
employed  to  their  full  capacity  throughout  the  year. 

(///)  The  diversion  of  large  bodies  of  water  from  Lake  Michigan 
for  supplying  the  drainage  canal  has  not  been  authorized  by  Con- 
gress, but  there  appears  to  be  a  tacit  general  agreement  that  no  objec- 
tion will  be  made  to  the  diversion  of  10.000  cubic  feet  per  second,  as 
originally  planned. 

(•it)  The  diversion  of  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second  will  lower  the 
levels  of  Lake  Michigan-Huron,  Lake  St.  Clair,  Lake  Erie,  Lake 
Ontario,  and  the  St.  Lawrence  River,  besides  the  important  connect- 


15 

ing  channels,  the  Detroit  and  St.  Clair  rivers,  by  amounts  varying 
from  4J  to  6^  inches  for  the  different  waters,  and  the  diversion  of 
14,000  cubic  feet  Avill  lower  them  from  6  to  8-J  inches.  The  diversion 
of  20,000  cubic  feet  will  lower  Lake  Michigan-Huron  about  13  inches 
and  Lake  Erie  about  11  inches. 

(o)  The  lake  traffic  which  passed  through  the  Detroit  River  in 
1905  was  about  58,000,000  tons,  valued  at  about  $615,000,000.  It  is 
increasing  annually  with  marvellous  rapidity.  The  records  for  the 
year  1906,  so  far  as  they  are  made  up,  indicate  that  the  number  of 
tons  which  passed  through  the  Detroit  River  in  1906  exceeded 
65,000,000,  valued  at  $690,000,000.  The  lowering  of  the  water  sur- 
face has  a  very  injurious  effect  upon  this  traffic,  and  upon  that  of  the 
Welland  and  St.  Lawrence  canals.  Chicago  being  one  of  the  princi- 
pal lake  ports,  there  will  be  very  few  communities  which  will  feel  the 
injury  more  than  she  will. 

(p)  The  cost  of  restoring  the  depth  in  the  harbors  of  the  Great 
Lakes  and  the  channels  between  the  lakes  is  estimated  at  $10,000,000, 
and  of  restoring  it  in  the  Welland  and  St.  Lawrence  canals  at 
$2,500.000.  This  expenditure  would  not  prevent  very  serious  annoy- 
ance to  the  navigation  interests  during  the  execution  of  the  remedial 
works,  which  would  occupy  several  years.  In  Lake  St.  Clair  navi- 
gation of  the  open  lake  would  be  replaced  by  that  of  an  artificial 
channel  or  canal  with  submerged  banks. 

(q)  The  extension  to  the  Calumet  region  of  the  method  of  sewage 
disposal  already  applied  to  the  Chicago  River  is  not  necessary  to  pre- 
serve the  health  of  Chicago,  there  being  other  and  better  methods 
available  for  the  Calumet  region.  The  final  cost  of  these  methods  is 
somewhat  greater  than  that  of  the  one  proposed,  but  the  works  can  be 
developed  as  the  population  increases,  and  only  a  part  of  their  cost 
need  be  incurred  at  present,  while  their  greater  efficiency  justifies  the 
increase  of  final  cost. 

(r)  The  diversion  of  10,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  second  at  Chi- 
cago will  render  practicable  a  waterway  to  the  Mississippi  River  14 
feet  deep.  Any  greater  depth  must  be  obtained  by  the  abstraction 
of  more  water  from  Lake  Michigan  and  at  the  expense  of  the  navi- 
gation interests  of  the  Great  Lakes  and  of  the  St.  Lawrence  Valley. 

(s)  The  effect  upon  Niagara  Falls  of  diverting  water  at  Chicago 
is  of  secondary  importance  when  considering  the  health  of  a  great 
city  and  the  navigation  interests  of  the  Great  Lakes  and  of  the  St. 
Lawrence  Valley,  but  it  is  proper  to  note  that  the  volume  of  the  falls 
will  be  diminished  by  the  full  amount  diverted  at  Chicago. 

RECOMMENDATIONS. 

41.  The  waters  of  Lake  Michigan  in  the  United  States,  the  waters 
of  Georgian  Bay  in  Canada,  and  the  waters  of  Lake  Superior 
partly  in  the  United  States  and  partly  in  Canada  all  form  sources 
of  supply  of  the  Great  Lakes  system,  finding  their  way  by  the  St. 
Lawrence  to  the  sea.  All  are  interdependent  and  there  can  be  no 
diversion  from  any  of  them  without  injury  to  the  whole  system. 
By  Article  XXVI  of  the  treaty  of  1871  it  is'provided  that  "  naviga- 
tion of  the  river  St.  Lawrence,  ascending  and  descending  from  the 
forty-fifth  parallel  of  north  latitude,  where  it  ceases  to  form  the 
boundary  between  the  two  countries,  from,  to,  and  into  the  sea, 
shall  forever  remain  free  and  open  for  the  purposes  of  commerce  to 
18819—07 3 


16 

the  citizens  of  the  United  States,  subject  to  any  laws  and  regulations 
of  Great  Britain,  or  of  the  Dominion  of  Canada,  not  inconsistent 
with  such  privileges  of  free  navigation.1'  It  is  desirable  that  in  any 
treaty  arrangement  the  waters  of  Lake  Michigan,  Georgian  Bay,  and 
all  other  waters  forming  part  of  the  Great  Lakes  system  should  be 
declared  to  be  "  forever  free  and  open  for  the  purposes  of  com- 
merce "  to  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  and  the  subjects  of 
His  Britannic  Majesty,  subject  to  any  laws  and  regulations  of 
either  country  not  inconsistent  with  such  privilege  of  free  naviga- 
tion. 

42.  The  preservation  of  the  levels  of  the  Great  Lakes  is  imperative. 
The  interest  of  navigation  in  these  waters  is  paramount,  subject  only 
to  the  right  of  use  for  domestic* purposes,  in  which  term  is  included 
necessary  sanitary  purposes.     In  our  report  of  November  15,  1906, 
upon  the  application  of  the  Minnesota  Canal  and  Power  Company  to 
divert  certain  waters  in  Minnesota  we  recommended,  among  other 
things — 

that  any  treaty  which  may  be  entered  into  should  define  the  uses  to  which 
international  waters  may  be  put  by  either  country  without  the  necessity  of 
adjustment  in  each  instance,  and  would  respectfully  suggest  that  such  uses 
should  be  declared  to  be  (a)  uses  for  necessary  domestic  and  sanitary  pur- 
poses; (ft)  service  of  locks  for  navigation  purposes;  (c)  the  right  to  navigate. 

It  is  our  opinion  that  so  far  as  international  action  is  concerned  a 
treaty  provision  of  that  kind  is  all  that  is  required  in  this  case.  We 
accordingly  renew  our  recommendation  of  November  15.  1906,  just 
quoted. 

43.  A  careful  consideration  of  all  the  circumstances  leads  us  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  diversion  of  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second  through 
the  Chicago  River  will,  with  proper  treatment  of  the  seAvage  from 
areas  now  sparsely  occupied,  provide  for  all  the  population  which 
will  ever  be  tributary  to  that  river,  and  that  the  amount  named  will 
therefore  suffice  for  the  sanitary  purposes  of  the  city  for  all  time. 
Incidentally  it  will  provide  for  the  largest  navigable  waterway  from 
Lake  Michigan  to  the  Mississippi  River  Avhich  has  been  considered  by 
Congress. 

We  therefore  recommend  that  the  Government  of  the  United  States 
prohibit  the  diversion  of  more  than  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second  for 
the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal. 

All  of  which  is  respectfully  submitted. 

O.  H.  ERNST. 
Brigadier-General,  U.  S.  Army,  retired, 

Chairman  American  Section. 
GEORGE  CLINTON, 
E.  E.  HASKELL, 
Members  American  Section. 

GEO.  C.  GIBBONS, 
Chairman  Canadian  Section. 
W.  F.  KING, 

LOUIS  COSTE. 

Members  Canadian  Section. 
Attest : 

W.  EDWARD  WILSON, 
Secretary  American  Section. 

THOMAS  COTE, 
Secretary  Canadian  Section. 


APPENDICES. 

A. — Report  dated  January,  1887,  to  the  mayor  and  city  council  of  Chicago,  of 
the  commission  appointed  to  examine  the  drainage  and  water  supply. 

B. — Letter  dated  June  29,  1906,  from  Mr.  Lyman  E.  Cooley,  civil  engineer,  for- 
merly chief  assistant  to  the  commission  of '1887. 

C. — Statement  of  expenditures  by  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  to  December  31, 
1905. 

D. — Copies  of  all  permits  issued  by  the  Secretary  of  War  to  the  sanitary  dis- 
trict of  Chicago. 

E. — Joint  resolution  of  Illinois  legislature  adopted  May  27,  1889. 

F. — Report  of  Messrs.  Rudolph  Hering  and  George  W.  Fuller  upon  methods  of 
sewage  disposal  available  at  Chicago. 

APPENDIX  A. 

CHICAGO,  January,  1881. 
To  the  honorable  mayor  and  city  council  of  the  city  of  Chicago: 

GENTLEMEN  :  On  January  27,  1886,  your  honorable  body  passed  a  resolution 
authorizing  the  creation  of  a  drainage  and  water-supply,  commission.  After 
being  amended,  February  23,  it  read  as  follows : 

"  Whereas  pure  water  and  scientific  drainage  are  necessities  of  this  com- 
munity, and  the  people  demand  a  system  of  water  supply  and  drainage  adequate 
to  meet  the  requirements  not  only  of  the  present,  but  of  years  to  come,  nor  will 
any  temporary  expedient  or  makeshift  satisfy  them ;  and 

"Whereas  a  thorough  and  permanent  system  of  supplying  pure  water  to 
our  citizens  and  caring  for  the  drainage  of  the  municipality  can  not  be  paid 
for  out  of  current  taxation,  therefore  it  is  desired  that  a  plan  shall  be  devised 
and  perfected  before  the  next  meeting  of  the  legislature  to  the  end  that  neces- 
sary legislation  may  be  had. 

"  For  the  purpose  of  carrying  into  effect  the  objects  sought,  there  is  recom- 
mended the  appointment  by  the  mayor  of  a  commission  to  consist  of  one  expert 
engineer,  whose  reputation  is  so  high  that  his  opinion  and  report  will  command 
the  respect  of  the  community,  and  with  him  one  or  two  consulting  engineers 
of  like  experience  in  engineering  and  sanitary  matters.  The  duty  of  this 
drainage  and  water-supply  commission,  made  up  as  above  set  forth,  should 
be  to  consider  all  plans  relating  to  drainage  and  water  supply  which  may 
be  brought  to  its  attention ;  to  make  such  examinations  and  investigations  and 
surveys  as  may  be  deemed  necessary;  to  collect  all  information  bearing  on 
this  problem ;  to  consider  all  recent  developments  in  the  matter  of  sewage 
disposal,  and  their  application  to  our  present  and  future  needs ;  to  consider  and" 
meet  necessity  of  increasing  our  water  supply  and  of  protecting  the  same  from 
contamination ;  to  remedy  our  present  inadequate  methods  of  drainage  and 
sewage  disposal ;  to  consider  the  relations  of  any  system  proposed  to  adjacent 
districts,  and  whether  there  may  not  be  a  union  between  the  city  and  its 
suburbs  to  solve  the  great  problem;  to  determine  the  great  question  as  to  the 
interest  which  the  State  and  the  United  States  may  have  in  the  disposal  of 
sewage  by  way  of  the  Illinois  River,  and  to  devise  plans  to  meet  any  objections 
thereto,  if  such  a  system  shall  be  thought  best ;  and  in  general  to  consider  and 
report  upon  any  and  all  things  which  relate  to  the  matter  of  water  supply  and 
drainage  of  the  city  of  Chicago. 

"The  commission  should  report  on  the  whole  matter  committed  to  it  in  the 
most  full  and  comprehensive  manner,  with  maps,  plans,  and  diagrams  complete, 
and  accompany  the  report  with  estimates  of  the  first  cost  and  annual  require- 
ments for  the  maintenance  of  the  system  proposed. 

"  The  report  of  the  commission  should  be  made  as  early  as  practicable,  and 
not  later  than  the  convening  of  the  next  session  of  the  Illinois  legislature  in 
January,  1887. 

(17) 


18 

"  In  consideration  of  the  foregoing,  be  it 

"  Resolved,  That  the  mayor  be,  and*"  is  hereby,  authorized  and  directed  to 
employ  on  behalf  of  the  city  one  expert  engineer  of  reputation  and  experience 
in  engineering  and  sanitary  matters,  at  a  salary  not  to  exceed  $10,000  per 
annum,  and  also  to  employ  such  consulting  engineers,  not  exceeding  two  in  num- 
ber, as  may  seem  necessary,  and  such  assistant  engineers  as  may  be  required, 
all  to  be  paid  according  to  services  rendered,  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  out  the 
objects  set  forth  in  the  preamble  hereto.  For  the  fees  of  said  assistant  engi- 
neers and  for  all  expenses  connected  with  said  work  there  shall  be  allowed  not 
to  exceed  the  sum  of  $20,000.  All  fees,  salaries,  and  expenses  connected  with 
said  work  shall  not  exceed  in  the  aggregate  the  sum  of  $30,000,  and  the  same 
shall  be  paid  from  the  water  fund  of  the  city  upon  vouchers  audited  by  the 
mayor  and  city  comptroller." 

In  accordance  with  the  terms  expressed  herein  his  honor  Carter  H.  Harrison 
appointed  Rudolph  Hering  as  chief  engineer,  Benezette  Williams  and  S.  G. 
Artingstall  as  consulting  engineers,  who  together  should  constitute  a  commis- 
sion. Mr.  Hering  entered  upon  duty  March  28,  Mr.  Williams  September  17,  and 
Mr.  Artingstall  December  21,  1886. 

The  investigation  designated  by  the  resolution  was  a  formidable  one,  com- 
prising no  less  a  task  than  the  consideration  of  the  entire  subject  of  the  future 
water  supply  and  drainage  of  Chicago.  It  appeared  doubtful  from  the  begin- 
ning that  a  report  such  as  was  demanded  could  be  furnished  within  th  >  speci- 
fied time,  for  the  simple  reason,  if  for  no  other,  that  observations  of  the  lake 
phenomena  and  of  the  flow  of  certain  rivers  should  be  extended  over  at  least 
one  year,  covering  four  consecutive  seasons,  in  order  to  draw  satisfactory 
deductions. 

But  the  large  amount  of  work  alone  that  was  asked  for  made  it  impracticable 
to  present  a  complete  report  in  so  short  a  time.  It  was  expected,  however,  that 
results  could  be  reached  sufficient  to  indicate  the  character  of  legislation 
required  to  carry  out  any  project  that  might  b;>  dctoi'inin  -d  upon,  and  that 
therefore  a  preliminary  report  having  this  end  in  view'  could  bp  made  at  the 
stated  time,  leaving  to  a  later  date  the  presentation  of  a  ivp.:rt  outlining  the 
detailed  features  of  the  scheme  recommended  and  embracing  the  minor  results 
of  the  entire  inquiry. 

The  present  communication  is  to  cover  the  ground  indicated  for  th?  prelimi- 
nary report,  and  besides  containing  the  conclusions  reached  regarding  the 
main  features  of  the  proposed  project,  it  contains  also  a  brief  review  of  the 
work  done  during  the  past  year  and  of  what  still  remains  to  be  done. 

The  month  of  April  was  devoted  to  a  general  examination  of  the  subject  of 
the  territory  to  be  investigated,  and  of  the  various  suggestions  that  had  been 
made  toward  effecting  a  solution  of  the  problem. 

The  examination  disclosed  the  fact  that  the  city  is  sometimes  greatly  suffering 
from  the  offensive  condition  of  parts  of  the  Chicago  River  and  its  branches, 
caused  by  the  discharge  of  sewage  into  the  same,  and  from  the  occasional  con- 
tamination of  its  water  supply,  brought  about  by  the  discharge  of  the  polluted 
contents  of  the  river  into  the  lake.  It  also  disclosed  the  fact  that  almost  every 
conceivable  way  of  dealing  with  these  questions  had  been  suggested  and  in  some 
forms  applied  during  the  past  thirty  years. 

The  problem  therefore  demands  the  attainment  of  two  ends — the  protection  of 
the  water  supply  and  the  removal  of  the  river  nuisance.  As  the  water  must  be 
taken  from  the  lake,  it  is  evident  that  both  its  pollution  and  the  objectionable 
condition  of  the  rivers  should  be  prevented  by  a  better  disposition  of  the  sewage. 
It  is,  therefore,  the  latter  question  which  constitutes  the  main  object  of  this 
investigation. 

Among  the  possible  methods  of  getting  rid  of  the  Chicago  sewage  there  are  but 
three  that  have  been  deemed  worthy  of  an  extended  consideration,  namely :  A 
discharge  into  Lake  Michigan,  a  disposal  upon  land,  and  a  discharge  into  the 
Des  Plaines  River.  The  preliminary  work  has,  therefore,  been  confined  to  these 
three  projects,  and  was  classed  as  topographic,  hydrographic,  and  miscellaneous. 

At  the  time  when  the  present  commission  began  its  labors  the  topographical 
work  had  already  received  some  attention.  Surveys  were  being  made  of  the 
Des  Plaines  River  from  Bridgeport  westward  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Arting- 
stall, city  engineer.  These  surveys  were  continued,  and  have  now  been  com- 
pleted as  far  as  Joliet.  They  include  contours  of  the  entire  valley  and  borings 
to  rock  between  Bridgeport  and  Lemont.  In  order  to  understand  the  hydrog- 
raphy of  the  Des  Plaines  Valley  above  the  point  where  the  Chicago  sewage 
could  be  discharged  into  it,  and  also  to  ascertain  the  probable  magnitude  and 


19 

effect  of  floods  in  the  river,  a  survey  was  made  of  its  bed  as  far  north  as 
Northfleld  township.  To  determine  the  area  of  the  basin  its  entire  divide  was 
located.  To  ascertain  the  practicability  of  diverting  the  flood  waters  from  the 
upper  portion  of  the  Des  Plaines  and  North  Branch  watersheds  directly  into 
the  lake,  and  thus  avoiding  the  difficulties  which  would  arise  from  their  pass- 
ing through  the  Chicago  River,  all  feasible  lines  were  surveyed.  Finally,  a  few 
levels  were  taken  of  the  area  adjoining  the  city  wherever  no  connected  levels 
existed  to  show  the  general  topographical  features  of  the  territory  over  which 
the  future  city  will  spread  out  and  from  which  the  drainage  will  require  arti- 
ficial removal. 

The  hydrographic  work  consisted  in  ascertaining  the  flow  of  the  Des  Plaines 
River,  the  rainfall  upon  its  area,  its  flood  discharges,  the  character  of  its  bed, 
and  the  probable  effect  of  discharging  the  Chicago  sewage  into  it  when  diluted 
by  a  large  and  constant  stream  of  water  from  the  lake.  It  consisted,  further, 
in  examining  the  nature  of  the  currents  in  the  lake  and  in  studying  the  rise 
and  fall  of  its  level,  and  in  ascertaining  the  amount  and  character  both  of  the 
sewage  discharged  into  it  and  of  the  deposits  in  the  river  and  lake  in  front  of 
the  city  to  determine  the  effects  of  the  present  sewage  disposal. 

Inquiry  and  surveys  were  made  to  show  the  feasibility  of  purifying  the 
Chicago  sewage  by  filtration  on  land.  Land  damages  were  carefully  estimated 
i'or  the  different  schemes ;  existing  records  were  searched  concerning  borings 
and  excavations  made  in  and  about  the  city,  so  that  the  practicability  of  certain 
lines  of  tunnels  could  be  discovered;  the  probable  growth  of  the  city  and  its 
suburbs,  as  well  as  the  probable  distribution  of  the  future  population,  received 
a  careful  attention,  and,  finally,  a  large  number  of  data  were  compiled  which 
pertain  to  the  existing  works  of  water  supply  and  sewerage  in  Chicago  and  the 
adjoining  towns. 

In  reporting  the  result  thus  far  gained  we  will  present  them  in  the  order 
most  convenient  for  discussion,  but  before  doing  so  will  briefly  describe  the 
present  manner  and  effect  of  the  sewage  disposal,  as  shown  by  this  investiga- 
tion. 

PRESENT   SEWAGE  DISPOSAL. 

The  sewage  works  of  Chicago  and  suburbs  have  been  planned  on  what  is 
called  the  combined  system,  in  which  the  sewers  serve  for  the  removal  both 
of  sewage  and  rain  water.  In  the  town  of  Evanston  they  empty  into  the 
lake.  In  the  town  of  Lakeview  they  partly  discharge  into  the  lake  and  partly 
into  the  North  Branch.  From  the  north  and  west  divisions  and  part  of  the  south 
division  of  Chicago,  the  drainage  enters  the  Chicago  River  and  its  branches, 
and  from  the  remaining  part  of  the  south  division  it  flows  into  the  lake  at 
three  outlets,  situated,  respectively,  at  Twelfth,  Twenty-second,  and  Thirty- 
fifth  streets.  The  sewers  of  Hyde  Park  discharge  into  the  lake,  excepting  those 
of  Pullman,  where  the  sewage  is  disposed  of  on  land.  The  town  of  Lake,  in- 
cluding the  Stock  Yards  district,  drains  into  the  South  Fork  of  the  Chicago  River. 

When  the  sewage  works  of  this  city  were  designed,  in  1856,  by  Mr.  E.  S. 
Chesbrough,  it  was  apprehended  that  ultimately  some  means  would  have  to 
be  found  to  change  the  water  in  the  river  from  time  to  time  or  to  keep  the 
sewage  entirely  out  of  it.  The  first  step  toward  improving  the  condition  of  the 
river  was  taken  by  deepening  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal,  so  as  to  cause 
a  current  from  the  lake  to  the  Des  Plaines  River  at  Lockport  The  next  step 
was  the  building  of  the  Fullerton  avenue  conduit  in  order  to  produce  a  circula- 
tion in  the  North  Branch ;  and  the  last  step  was  the  erection  of  the  canal  pump- 
ing works  to  increase  the  flow  in  the  river,  which  had  become  greatly  polluted. 

The  influence  of  these  works  is  confined  to  the  main  river  and  its  north  and 
south  branches.  But  the  south  fork  of  the  latter,  receiving  a  large  amount  of 
sewage  from  Chicago  and  the  town  of  Lake,  and  charged  with  the  waste  from 
the  Union  Stock  Yards  and  packing  houses,  has  no  artificial  means  for  a  circula- 
tion of  its  water,  and  as  a  consequence  is  in  a  condition  of  great  filthiness. 

The  accompanying  diagram  «  has  been  prepared  to  show  the  present  pollution 
of  the  Chicago  River  and  its  branches  during  the  time  when  all  of  their  water  is 
discharged  into  the  canal  by  the  Bridgeport  pumps.  On  the  left  are  shown  the 
main  river  and  the  north  branch,  one  above  the  other,  their  combined  waters 
forming  the  south  branch,  and  reaching  Bridgeport  on  the  right,  where  they  are 
lifted  into  the  canal. 


«  Omitted ;  printed  in  House  Ex.  Doc.  No.  264,  51st  Cong.,  1st  sess. 


20 

At  the  latter  point  the  south  fork  is  shown  as  joining  it.  The  shaded  portions 
indicate  the  amount  of  se\vago  entering  and  passing  the  respective  points,  and 
the  blank  portions  the  lake  water  diluting  it.  The  degree  of  dilution  is  shown 
by  the  relative  areas.  It  diminishes  in  the  north  branch  from  Fullerton  avenue 
to  the  south  branch,  and  becomes  still  less  toward  Bridgeport,  and  finally 
receives  the  foul  waters  of  the  south  fork. 

The  depth  and  character  of  sewage  deposits  in  the  river  and  harbor,  as 
might  he  expected,  vary  considerably.  They  are  not  great  in  the  track  of 
the  vessels,  but  increase  toward  the  docks  and  quieter  portions  of  the  slips, 
where  they  reach  a  depth  of  from  1  to  4  feet  While  the  deposits  in  the  channel 
are  of  a  heavier  kind,  such  as  cinders,  those  in  the  docks  are  mostly  a  foul  mass 
of  decomposing  organic  matter.  No  form  of  life  is  found  to  exist  above  Clark 
Street  Bridge  as  far  north  as  Clybourn  place  and  as  far  south  as  Ashland  avenue. 
The  effect  of  this  condition  of  the  river  is  to  endanger  the  purity  of  the  water 
supply  whenever  the  river,  with  its  accumulated  deposits,  flows"  into  the  lake, 
which  occurs  when  the  rain  water  that  finds  its  way  into  the  river  exceeds  the 
amount  pumped  into  the  canal.  If  this  excess  is  great,  as  in  the  spring  and 
occasionally  in  the  summer  months,  the  contamination  of  the  lake  is  consider- 
able, and  must  constantly  increase. 

From  the  foregoing  it  is  seen  that  the  present  method  of  disposal  of  the  sew- 
age from  Chicago  and  its  suburbs  is  partly  by  discharging  it  into  Lake  Michigan, 
but  mainly,  except  during  floods,  by  discharging  it  into  the  Des  Plaines  River. 

FUTURE    POPULATION. 

The  first  question  which  required  an  answer,  and  upon  which  many  of  the 
subsequent  inquiries  depended,  was  the  population  which  it  is  economical  and 
advisable  to  consider  at  present,  and  the  extent  of  territory  upon  which  such 
a  population  will  be  located. 

The  growth  of  Chicago  has  been  frequently  quoted  as  phenomenal.  Esti- 
mates made  thereof  for  various  purposes  have  turned  out  to  be  rather  under 
than  over  the  actual  result 

It  is  taken  for  granted  that  Chicago  and  its  suburban  towns  will  have  to  dis- 
pose of  their  sewage  so  that  the  water  supply  for  the  entire  community  residing 
near  the  lake  from  the  south  line  of  Hyde  Park  to  the  north  line  of  Evanston 
will  be  guarded  against  pollution  by  the  sewage  from  any  one  of  its  separate 
communities.  For  this  purpose  the  whole  populated  area  within  the  above 
limits  is  considered  as  forming  one  city  with  a  common  interest. 

The  growth  of  this  metropolis  was  obtained  partly  from  the  United  States 
census  and  partly  from  the  school  census  of  Cook  County,  which  gave  a  record 
up  to  the  summer  of  1886.  In  order  to  forecast  the  probable  ratio  of  the  future 
increase  it  was  desirable  to  compare  this  growth  with  that  of  other  cities.  By 
considering  the  ratio  in  increase  elsewhere,  and  including  the  natural  suburbs 
of  each  city,  a  fair  and  instructive  basis  of  comparison  was  obtained;  and  by 
realizing  the  respective  natural  advantages  for  growth  in  each  of  the  communi- 
ties the  probable  ratio  for  Chicago  was  determined  with  a  satisfactory  degree 
of  exactness. 

The  accompanying  diagram  shows  the  results  of  this  comparison.  It  repre- 
sents by  curves  the  population  of  the  largest  cities  in  the  country  since  1790,  not 
as  usually  quoted  from  the  census,  giving  the  inhabitants  on  certain  arbitrary 
areas  fixed  by  law,  but  as  virtually  making  up  the  population  of  the  respective 
municipalities,  by  including  adjacent  towns  and  natural  suburbs,  the  only 
method  which  enables  the  true  growth  of  the  great  cities  to  be  recognized.  F'or 
instance,  the  New  York  center  naturally  includes  Brooklyn,  Jersey  City,  Hobo- 
ken,  Newark,  and  other  suburbs,  and  Chicago,  the  entire  territory  from  Hyde 
Park  to  Evanston. 

The  diagram  indicates  that  the  character  of  growth  of  the  different  cities 
permits  them  to  be  divided  into  two  distinct  classes.  Philadelphia,  Boston.  St. 
Louis,  and  Cincinnati  show  very  much  the  same  character  of  increase,  and  rep- 
resent by  comparison  the  more  conservative  communities.  New  York  and  Chi- 
cago, on  the  other  hand,  while  showing  a  remarkable  resemblance  to  each  other, 
I'nrm  quite  a  contrast  to  the  rest  of  the  cities,  and  might  be  called  the  more  pro- 
gressive; communities.  The  diagram  finally  indicates  the  time  when  the  Chicago 
curve,  which  \vas  the  lowest  one  prior  to  18(14:,  intersected  in  turn  those  of  St. 
Louis,  Cincinnati.  Boston,  and  there  is  a  high  degree  of  probability  of  its  inter- 
secting the  Philadelphia  curve  in  or  before  1891 — i.  e.,  in  four  years  from  now — 
after  which  Chicago  will  be  the  second  largest  center  of  population  in  America. 


21 

As  it  is  not  practicable  in  so  young  a  city  as  Chicago  to  forecast  a  definite 
line  of  growth,  it  is  preferred  to  give  the  probable  maximum  and  the  probable 
minimum  between  which  the  true  line  will  most  likely  be  contained.  The 
minimum  line  represents  a  growth  resembling  that  of  New  York  and  the  maxi- 
mum line  assumes  the  ratio  ol  increase  per  decade  to  be  constant  instead  of 
gradually  decreasing  as  in  most  other  cities.  The  result  indicates  that  the 
population  of  Chicago  and  suburbs  will  be  2,500,000  between  the  years  1905  and 
1915,  or  about  three  times  the  present  population  in  eighteen  to  twenty-eight 
years. 

In  providing  public  works  for  large  communities  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that 
it  is  economical  to  invest  only  such  sums  as  will  bring  a  return  within  a  certain 
number  of  years,  leaving  expenditures  for  benefits  that  will  be  realized  only 
at  a  later  time  to  a  later  generation.  This  fact,  together  with  the  probable 
growth  of  Chicago,  shows  it  to  be  economical  and  judicious  at  present  to  plan 
works  sufficiently  extensive  to  dispose  of  the  sewage  of  not  less  than  2,500,000 
inhabitants. 

In  addition  to  the  population  the  area  that  will  be  occupied  by  it  has  to  be 
determined.  While  this  is  a  far  more  difficult  task,  owing  to  the  many  acci- 
dental causes  influencing  the  distribution  of  the  population,  it  is  possible 
nevertheless  to  outline  the  area  sufficiently  close  for  present  purposes. 

The  future  metropolis,  with  a  population  three  times  as  great,  will  be  dis- 
tributed along  the  lake  from  South  Chicago  to  Evanston,  and  wrill  reach  inland 
to  the  Blue  Island  Ridge  in  the  south  to  the  Des  Plaines  River  in  the  center, 
and  to  the  higher  parts  of  Niles  Township  in  the  north.  Outside  of  these  gen- 
eral limits,  a  more  or  less  dense  population  will  extend  for  some  distance 
along  the  lines  of  railroad.® 

As  inferred  above,  it  is  proper  to  consider -at  this  time  the  wants  of  the  pop- 
ulation that  will  reside  upon  this  entire  territory. 

DISCHARGE    OF    THE    SEWAGE    INTO    LAKE    MICHIGAN. 

To  discharge  the  sewage  from  cities  into  comparatively  large  bodies  of  water 
is  not  only  the  usual,  but  often  the  best  method  for  its  disposal.  Dilution  and 
dispersion  thoroughly  expose  it  to  the  action  of  the  oxygen  contained  in  both 
the  water  and  the  superincumbent  air ;  it  is  thereby  gradually  oxidized.  Where 
the  body  of  water  is  a  large  river  with  a  strong  current,  the  best  conditions 
for  such  purification  are  found.  Where  it  is  a  lake  in  which  the  circulation 
is  slight  and  irregular,  the  efficacy  of  the  method  is  less  and  depends  for  its 
success  on  the  character  of  the  currents  and  the  relative  amount  of  sewage 
to  be  discharged  into  it. 

The  hydrographic  surveys  of  the  lake  made  during  the  past  season  were 
therefore  partly  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining,  if  possible,  the  laws  governing 
the  currents,  so  that  we  would  know  their  effect  in  dispersing  the  sewage  dis- 
charged into  the  lake.  The  trend  of  the  shore  currents  was  actually  ascer- 
tained by  daily  recording  the  direction  of  spar  buoys  placed  at  the  Chicago 
waterworks  crib,  at  Michigan  City  and  at  St.  Joseph.  A  large  number  of  bot- 
tle floats  were  thrown  into  the  lake  at  different  points  and  different  times  for 
the  same  purpose.  They  were  partly  single  surface  floats  and  partly  double, 
the  lower  one  being  placed  at  varying  depths,  according  to  the  depth  of  the 
water.  More  than  half  of  them  have  been  picked  up  and  returned,  with  place 
and  date  noted.  The  currents  were  also  observed  by  uieeans  of  large  can  buoys 
from  an  anchored  tugboat  at  different  points  in  the  lake  extending  from  Hyde 
Park  to  Evanston,  about  6  miles  from  the  shore.  Two  general  lake  trips  were 
undertaken,  one  to  St.  Joseph  and  back  to  Grosse  Point,  and  another  one  par- 
allel with  the  shore  around  the  head  of  the  lake. 

When  the  observations  are  completed  and  compiled  in  detail,  some  valuable 
information  will  be  available  for  the  question  of  water  supply.  Light  will  be 
thrown  on  the  movement  of  the  water  under  different  winds  and  the  sudden 
changes  of  temperature  of  the  water  at  the  crib  and  on  the  turbidness  of  the 
same. 

The  following  results  have  a  bearing  on  the  question  of  sewage  disposal : 
Where  not  affected  by  local  conditions,  the  currents  practically  go  with  the 
winds  in  water  of  moderate  depth  and  quickly  respond  to  any  change.  In  deep 

o  Here  occurs  a  diagram  showing  the  "  growth  of  several  population  centers  in 
the  United  States,"  not  here  reproduced. 


22 

water  also  the  surface  currents  run  with  the  wind,  but  at  the  bottom  and  even 
at  mid-depth  the  direction  is  usually  different.  The  prevailing  current  along  the 
shore  of  Cook  County  during  the  past  summer  has  been  observed  to  be  toward 
the  north,  but  it  is  possible  that  this  result  may  be  different  during  the  winter 
months.  In  the  open  lake  wave  action  seems  to  be  effective  in  preventing  the 
permanent  deposits  down  to  a  depth  of  about  GO  feet ;  inside  of  the  break- 
water sewage  deposits  are  found  on  the  bottom. 

The  general  deduction  from  these  results  is  clear  that,  as  no  constant  current 
exists  which  would  carry  the  sewage  away  in  one  direction,  it  should  be  dis- 
charged into  the  lake  at  one  end  of  the  future  city,  while  the  water  supply 
should  be  obtained  as  far  away  from  it  as  practicable  toward  the  other  end,  a 
conclusion  which  is  being  acted  upon  in  the  other  large  lake  cities.  The  proper 
place  from  which  to  bring  the  water  would  be  opposite  Grosse  Point,  and  the 
sewage  discharge  should  be  east  of  Hyde  Park.  While  it  might  be  practicable 
to  allow  the  sewage  in  its  crude  form  to  enter  the  lake  under  such  conditions 
for  many  years,  the  necessity  would  arise  later  for  clarifying  it  at  least  par- 
tially previous  to  its  discharge.  It  could  not  be  allowed  to  run  into  the  river 
as  at  present,  but  the  dry  weather  flow  and  a  considerable  amount  of  storm 
water  would  have  to  be  intercepted  and  carried  to  the  outfall  through  many  miles 
of  special  conduits.  This  entire  quantity  would  have  to  be  raised  by  pumping  in 
order  to  get  sufficient  head  to  empty  into  the  lake,  while  the  diluted  sewage 
during  storms,  in  excess  of  the  capacity  of  the  intercepting  sewers,  would  be 
allowed  to  discharge  directly  into  the  river. 

The  water  supply  would  have  to  be  brought  from  Grosse  Point  in  large  con- 
duits to  the  several  pumping  stations  scattered  over  the  city  and  its  present 
suburbs.  The  circulation  of  the  water  in  the  Chicago  River  and  branches 
would  have  to  be  maintained  practically  as  it  is  at  present,  because  the  removal 
merely  of  the  dry-weather  flow  of  sewage  would  not  altogether  prevent  its 
pollution. 

DISPOSAL   OF    LAND. 

We  shall  not  at  this  time  enter  into  a  general  discussion  of  the  principles 
underlying  land  purification  of  sewage,  or  make  historical  references  showing 
the  success  or  ill  success  of  the  method  as  practiced  elsewhere.  We  will  simply 
state  that  with  good  management  under  ordinarily  favorable  conditions  a  dis- 
posal on  land  proves  satisfactory,  so  far  as  the  purifications  of  the  sewage  is 
concerned,  and  that  with  proper  conditions  in  the  way  of  good  markets  and  a 
favorable  soil  and  climate  sewage  farms  can  be  operated  on  a  large  scale  after 
the  sewage  is  delivered  upon  the  same  without  financial  loss. 

In  speaking  of  a  sewage  farm  of  the  magnitude  required  for  the  metropolitan 
area  of  Chicago,  it  is  not  understood  as  being  land  devoted  primarily  to  the 
raising  of  crops,  using  the  sewage  only  when  and  where  it  would  most  promote 
the  growth  of  vegetation.  The  primary  object  would  be  the  purification  of 
the  sewage  on  an  area  of  land  as  small  as  could  serve  the  purpose.  Technically 
speaking,  the  sewage  disposal  would  be  by  means  of  intermittent  filtration 
rather  than  irrigation.  To  carry  out  such  a  scheme  for  Chicago  involves  the 
following : 

(1)  The  acquirement  of  sufficient  land  suitable  for  the  purpose. 

(2)  A  comprehensive  system  of  intercepting  and  collecting  sewers  carrying 
the  sewage  to  the  farm. 

(3)  Pumping  works  of  a  capacity  to  handle  all  the  dry  weather  flow  of 
sewage  and  a  certain  proportion  of  storm  water. 

(4)  A  thorough  underdrainage,  leveling,  and  preparing  of  beds  for  the  filtra- 
tion areas. 

5.  A  system  of  underground  conduits  and  surface  carriers  for  distributing  the 
sewage  over  the  ground,  and  a  system  of  open  ditches  for  removing  the  purified 
water  to  the  nearest  water  courses. 

6.  Buildings,  roads,  and  a  complete  farming  outfit. 

7.  An  organization  for  properly  distributing  the  sewage,  for  carrying  on  the 
farming  operations,  for  conducting  the  business  of  disposing  of  the  crops  in  the 
best  market. 

In  making  estimates  for  the  size  of  intercepting  sewers,  conduits,  pumps,  and 
area  of  land  required  we  have  ueed  as  a  basis  a  population  of  2,500,000  people, 
with  an  average  dry-weather  sewage  discharge  of  150  gallons,  or  20  cubic  feet, 
per  head  daily,  and  made  provision  for  storm  water  equivalent  to  one-fifth  of  an 
inch  in  twenty-four  hours  over  all  portions  of  the  district  now  drained  or  likely 


to  be  drained  by  a  combined  system  of  sewers,  allowing  surplus  water  to  escape 
into  the  rivers  and  lakes. 

The  dry- weather  flow  of  sewage  would  therefore  be  50,000,000  cubic  feet  per 
day,  and  the  maximum  flow  of  storm  water  65,000,000  cubic  feet  per  day,  making 
a  total  maximum  discharge  of  115,000,000  cubic  feet. 

From  an  examination  of  rainfall  tables  we  conclude  that  the  annual  amount 
of  storm  water  that  would  be  carried  off  by  such  an  intercepting  system  would 
range  from  9  to  12  inches,  an  average  of  which  in  round  numbers  may  be  taken 
at  40,000  cubic  feet  per  acre  per  annum  over  the  area  drained  by  a  combined 
system  of  sewers.  It  is  practicable,  however,  to  exclude  the  storm  water  from 
the  sewers  over  a  large  portion  of  the  future  city  by  adopting  the  separate 
system  of  sewerage.  The  area  north  of  the  town  of  Jefferson  and  of  the  middle 
of  Lakeview  may  be  treated  to  advantage  in  this  way,  and  also  a  large  portion 
of  Hyde  Park,  Lake  Calumet,  and  other  adjoining  towns. 

Assuming  that  the  area  which  does  not  allow  the  storm  water  to  be  entirely 
excluded  is  140  square  miles,  the  average  daily  amount  becomes  10,000,000 
cubic  feet,  which  gives,  when  added  to  the  sewage,  00,00,000  cubic  feet,  or  24 
cubic  feet  per  head  of  population  per  day  to  be  provided  for  on  the  farm. 

As  the  amount  of  land  required  to  purify  sewage  can  only  be  determined  by 
experience,  and  as  this  has  been  very  limited  in  our  own  country,  we  are  forced 
to  rely  mainly  upon  that  of  Europe.  Without  going  into  details  at  present,  we 
will  simply  state  that  a  fair  consensus  of  this  experience  justifies  us  in  the  con- 
clusion that  from  10,000  to  15,000  acres  of  land  would  be  required  to  dispose 
of  the  sewage  from  the  entire  metropolitan  area. 

The  only  available  territory  for  sewage  filtration  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Chicago  consists  of  two  sandy  ridges  in  the  town  of  Thornton,  extending  across 
the  State  line  into  Indiana,  and  in  a  sandy  ridge  crossing  .the  town  of  Niles. 
The  soil  is  quite  favorable,  but  the  character  of  the  surface  is  such  that  the 
necessary  preparation  to  make  it  suitable  for  filtration  beds  would  be  compara- 
tively expensive.  An  enormous  cost  is,  however,  represented  by  the  fact  that 
the  sewage  would  have  to  be  collected  by  large  intercepting  sewers,  lifted  alto- 
gether some  90  feet,  and  carried  about  20  miles  before  reaching  the  farms.  We 
therefore  consider  such  a  project  entirely  impracticable. 

The  land  treatment  can  only  be  seriously  thought  of  in  connection  with  the 
sewage  disposal  from  the  smaller  areas  mentioned  above  and  comprising  the 
extreme  northern  and  southern  parts  of  the  future  metropolis.  The  drainage  of 
parts  of  Evanston,  Lake  View,  and  Niles  might  be  taken  to  the  sandy  ground  in 
the  latter  town,  and  that  of  the  Calumet  region  to  the  sandy  ridges  in  Thornton, 
should  this  method  be  found  most  advantageous  when  compared  with  others. 

The  preliminary  invesigation  made  for  this  purpose  consisted  in  an  examina- 
tion of  the  grounds,  in  the  projection  of  a  farm,  and  in  an  estimte  of  the  cost 
of  preparing  the  same  and  delivering  the  sewage  to  it  by  intercepting  sewers 
and  conduits. 

DISCHABGE  OF  THE   SEWAGE  INTO  THE  DES  PLAINES  BIVEB. 

A  third  solution  of  the  drainage  problem  is  rendered  practicable  by  the  fact 
that  the  divide  between  Lake  Michigan  and  the  Mississippi  Valley  lies  about 
10  miles  west  of  Chicago,  with  so  slight  an  elevation  that  it  is  not  a  difficult 
matter  to  carry  the  se\vage  from  the  city  westward  into  the  Des  Plaines  River, 
and  thence  into  the  Mississippi  River.  The  method  of  disposal,  as  previously 
explained,  is  in  fact  mainly  the  present  one,  most  of  the  sewage  now  being 
carried  across  the  divide  by  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal. 

There  are  two  low  depressions  between  the  future  metropolis  and  the  Des 
Plaines  River — the  Mud  Lake  Valley,  with  the  present  canal,  and  the  Sag  Valley 
west  of  Lake  Calumet.  Neither  is  more  than  10  feet  above  the  lake,  nor  do 
they  present  any  engineering  difficulties  for  canal  construction.  It  is  therefore 
quite  feasible  to  carry  all  the  drainage  from  the  territory  ultimately  to  be  occu- 
pied by  the  metropolis,  extending  from  Lake  Calumet  to  Evanston,  into  the 
Mississippi  Valley  through  these  depressions,  avoiding  thereby  all  possible  lake 
pollution  and  permitting  the  supply  of  water  to  be  drawn  from  any  number  of 
convenient  points  in  front  of  the  city. 

The  possibility  of  this  solution  was  recognized  as  early  as  1856  by  Mr.  E.  S. 
Chesbrough,  and  the  first  step  toward  its  adoption  was  taken,  as  already  men- 
tioned, by  turning  the  sewage  into  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal.  Not  until 
quite  recently,  however,  has  it  become  practicable  to  consider  the  construction 

18819—07 4 


24 

of  a  special  waterway  for  sewage  removal,  because  when  the  population  was 
smaller  the  expense  of  the  undertaking  was  too  great. 

The  sanitary  requirements  demand  a  flow  of  water  large  enough  to  dilute 
the  sewage  sufficiently  to  make  it  inoffensive  along  the  river  at  all  times. 
Beyond  this,  any  increase  in  the  size  of  the  channel  to  provide  for  the  storm 
water  which  naturally  enters  it  should  be  kept  at  a  minimum.  A  glance  at 
the  map  and  an  examination  of  the  ground  show  the  possibility  of  diverting 
the  greater  part  of  the  storm  water  from  the  metropolitan  district  without 
serious  difficulty.  Both  branches  of  the  Calumet  River  can  be  diverted  west  of 
the  Indiana  State  line  into  Wolf  Lake,  and  thence  into  Lake  Michigan.  The 
Des  Plaines  River  can  have  its  Hood  waters  diverted  into  the  North  Branch 
near  the  north  line  of  the  town  of  Jefferson,  and  the  combined  waters  can  be 
led  from  Bowmanville  directly  into  the  lake.  Salt  (."reek,  a  branch  of  the  Des 
Plaines  River,  can  readily  be  turned  southwardly  near  Western  Springs. 
through  a  water  cour.  e  kirnvn  as  Flag  Creek,  at  one  time  evidently  its  old  bed. 
discharging  into  the  Des  Plaines  <  pposite  Sag,  and  thus  reducing  the  necessary 
storm-water  capacity  in  the  new  channel  between  Sag  and  Summit. 

In  order  to  determine  the  probable  quantity  of  flood  water  which  can  thus 
be  excluded,  it  was  necessary  to  ascertain  the  maximum  flood  discharges  from 
all  the  watersheds  in  question.  This  requirement  called  for  a  gauging  of  Des 
Plaines.  North  Branch,  and  Calumet  rivers;  a  gauging  of  the  rainfall,  which  is 
a  measure  of  the  stream  flow  :  a  survey  rf  the  water  sheds  and  an  examination 
of  the  river  channels.  It  was  also  necessary  to  make  a  reconnaissance  of  all 
possible  lines  for  diverting  the  Des  Plaines,  the  North  Branch,  the  Calumet 
rivers,  and  Salt  Creek,  and  a  survey  of  those  which  were  most  important. 

The  results  indicate  that  each  one  of  these  diversions  is  both  practical  and 
economical.  By  adopting  the  "  separate  system  "  of  sewerage  for  the  territory 
lying  north  of  the  proposed  Bowmanville  channel,  the  surface  drainage  from 
this  territory  can  be  safely  turned  into  the  lake. 

A  second  branch  of  the  investigation  extends  to  the  elements  governing  the 
proper  size  of  the  waterway  from  which  a  large  proportion  of  the  storm  water 
has  been  excluded.  The  area  still  draining  into  it  will  consist  largely  of  paved 
streets  and  roofs,  allowing  of  no  absorption  and  shedding  the  water  rapidly.  It 
requires  a  careful  consideration  to  determine  the  maximum  quantity  of  water 
that  may  enter  the  proposed  channel,  and  for  which  an  ample  allowance  must 
be  made  to  prevent  a  back  flow  of  the  polluted  water  to  the  lake. 

The  proper  degree  of  sewage  pollution  in  the  new  channel  demanded  a  careful 
investigation.  When  sewage  is  mingled  with  a  sufficiently  large  quantity  of 
water  it  not  only  becomes  inoffensive,  but  readily  finds  the  oxygen  which  grad- 
ually purifies  it.  When  the  surface  is  covered  with  ice  a  greater  dilution  is 
necessary  for  this  purpose  than  at  other  times  when  there  is  a  constant  replen- 
ishment of  oxygen  from  the  air.  The  proposed  waterway  should,  of  course, 
provide  immunity  from  offense  at  all  times. 

The  information  upon  which  definitely  to  decide  this  question  will  be  given 
in  the  final  report,  as  the  data  have  not  yet  been  all  collected,  owing  to  the 
necessity  of  making  actual  tests  of  the  oxidization  of  the  canal  water  under 
the  ice,  which  is  being  done  for  the  use  of  the  commission  by  Dr.  J.  H.  Rauch, 
secretary  of  the  State  board  of  health.  The  summer  conditions  are  presented 
in  his  late  report  on  the  water  supply  and  sewage  disposal  of  Chicago.  The 
result  of  these  analyses  will  be  compared  with  those  of  other  streams  that 
are  also  polluted  with  sewage  in  order  to  show  the  rate  of  oxidization  with 
varying  degrees  of  dilution  and  aeration. 

For  the  purpose  of  estimating  the  cost  of  the  water  channel  we  have  assumed 
3,600  square  feet  for  the  cross  section  and  a  velocity  of  the  water  3  feet  per 
second,  or  2  miles  per  hour.  This  gives  a  discharge  of  600,000  cubic  feet  of 
water  per  minute,  or  24,000  cubic  feet  for  each  100,000  persons,  which  we  be- 
lieve equal  to  the  maximum  requirements  of  a  population  of  2,500,000  people. 

A  third  branch  of  the  inquiry  covers  the  selection  of  routes  for  the  proposed 
canals. 

Between  Chicago  and  Summit  three  lines  are  practicable — one  following  the 
west  fork  and  Ogden  ditch,  and  another  extending  from  the  southwestern  end 
of  the  south  fork  in  a  westerly  direction  to  the  Ogden  ditch,  and  thence  to 
Summit,  and  a  third  being  an  enlargement  of  the  present  canal.  We  are  of  the 
opinion  that  eventually  both  the  first  and  second  of  these  lines  should  be  adopted, 
but  that  the  second  one  should  be  built  first  in  order  to  secure  circulation  in  the 
south  fork.  From  Summit  westward  the  bed  of  the  river  and  the  present  canal 


25 

were  the  only  lines  to  be  considered.  The  best  location  has  not  yet  been  finally 
determined. 

For  the  drainage  of  the  Calumet  region  a  simple  inspection  shows  that  a 
canal  should  start  from  the  river  at  the  southern  point  of  Blue  Island,  and 
extend  almost  directly  westward  to  the  Des  Plaines  Valley  at  Sag. 

A  fourth  branch  of  the  inquiry  relates  to  the  study  of  such  data  as  have 
reference  to  securing  a  proper  circulation  for  the  waterways  within  the  city. 

To  throw  light  upon  this  point  the  variations  of  the  lake  level  have  been 
recorded  since  last  spring  by  means  of  an  automatic  gauge  indicating  an  almost 
continual  fluctuation,  averaging  several  inches,  and  recurring  at  periods  of  about 
twenty  minutes.  During  a  low  pressure  of  the  atmosphere  the  amplitude  of 
these  oscillations  increases,  and  not  unfrequently  reaches  several  feet.  The 
accompanying  diagram  «  shows  the  level  of  the  lake  on  August  16,  1886,  at  a  time 
when  an  area  of  low  barometer  passed  over  it.  From  6.40  a.  m.  to  6.55  a.  m. — 
that  is.  in  fifteen  minutes — the  water  fell  2  feet  10  inches. 

A  rising  level  causes  an  inflow  to  the  river  and  drives  the  water  of  the  latter 
into  the  slips,  where  it  deposits  a  portion  of  its  suspended  sewage  matter  and 
becomes  foul.  A  falling  level  reverses  the  flow,  and  the  slips  empty  their  foul 
water  into  the  river  and  lake.  During  heavy  fluctuations  of  the  latter,  such 
as  the  one  referred  to  above,  it  has  been  traced  more  than  a  mile  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  crib. 

As  the  proposed  canal  from  Bowmauville  to  the  lake  will  lower  the  water  of 
the  North  Branch  at  this  point  to  the  lake  level,  provision  must  be  made  for 
its  circulation.  The  size  of  the  Fullerton  avenue  conduit  is  not  sufficient  to 
furnish  the  water  required  for  a  current  in  both  directions,  nor  would  such  an 
arrangement  be  satisfactory  or  economical.  It  will  be  necessary  to  establish  a 
flow  toward  the  South  Branch  from  the  lake  opposite  Bowmanville  in  order  to 
prevent  a  future  lake  pollution  by  the  proposed  channel.  This  can  be  accom- 
plished by  placing  a  lock  in  the  North  Branch  at  any  point  that  may  be  found 
most  desirable  and  raising  the  water  at  the  same  time  about  1  foot.  If  such  a 
lock  is  placed  at  Fullerton  avenue  the  present  pumping  works,  with  slight 
modifications,  can  be  utilized. 

Finally,  it  must  be  mentioned  that  circulation  can  be  secured  in  the  proposed 
waterways  of  the  Calumet  region,  into  which  the  sewage  is  discharged,  by  a 
gravity  flow  from  Lake  Michigan  into  the  Des  Plaines  Valley  through  Lake  Cal- 
umet and  the  sag.  The  detailed  features  of  this  project  have  not  yet  been  wholly 
matured,  the  estimates  of  cost  being  based  on  a  channel  having  a  capacity  of 
1,000  cubic  feet  per  second. 

COMPARISON    OF   PEOJECTS. 

In  the  foregoing  we  have  outlined  the  main  features  of  the  only  three  feasible 
methods  of  disposing  of  the  metropolitan  sewage,  and  have  given  the  results  of 
the  investigation  reached  to  date.  A  general  conclusion  as  to  the  preferable 
method  may  be  given  at  present,  and  also  an  approximate  estimate  of  cost. 
But  we  are  not  able  as  yet  to  give  either  conclusions  or  detailed  statements  of 
the  probable  expense  regarding  all  parts  of  the  proposed  work,  and  must  defer 
them  until  the  final  report. 

In  comparing  the  projects  we  will  first  mention  their  probable  cost  and  then 
their  relative  advantages. 

The  discharge  of  the  sewage  into  the  lake  from  a  population  of  2,500,000  in 
the  manner  described  above,  including  the  extra  expense,  otherwise  not  neces- 
sary, of  taking  the  water  supply  of  Grosse  Point,  would  cost  at  least  $37,000,000, 
with  an  annual  expense  for  interest  and  operation  of  at  least  $2,400,000.  It 
would  require  an  immediate  investment  of  about  $20,000,000. 

To  dispose  of  the  entire  metropolitan  sewage  by  filtration  on  land  would  re- 
quire an  investment  of  about  $58,000,000,  with  an  annual  expense  of  over 
$3,000,000  for  interest,  pumping,  and  maintenance,  after  deducting  the  profit 
from  the  sale  of  crops.  It  would  be  necessary  to  invest  at  once  about 
$34,000,000.  Land  disposal  for  the  sewage  from  the  Calumet  region  alone, 
with  a  future  population  of  300,000,  would  require  an  investment  of  about 
$4,000,000  and  an  annual  expense  of  at  least  $250,000. 

«  Omitted ;  printed  in  House  Ex.  Doc.  No.  264,  51st  Cong.,  1st  sess. 


26 

Finally,  the  cost  of  the  Des  Plaines  project  is  approximately  estimated  as 
follows  : 

1.  A  channel  from  the  South  Fork  to  Joliet  of  the  capacity  heretofore  given 
will  cost  between  $17,000,000  and  $21,000,000. 

2.  A  diversion  of  the  flood  waters  of  the  Des  Plaines,  the  North  Branch,  and 
Salt  Creek  will  cost  between  $2,500,000  and  $2,800.000. 

3.  Pumping  works  and  locks 'for  the  North  Branch  will  cost  about  $150,000. 

4.  A    separate    system    of    sewers    to    collect    the    sewage    now    discharged 
directly  into  the  lake  and  to  carry  it  into  the  river  will  cost  about  $600,000. 

5.  A  channel   from  Lake  Calumet  to  Sag  will  cost  between  $2,500,000  and 
$3,000,000. 

(>.  A  diversion  of  the  flood  waters  of  the  Calumet  River  will  cost  between 
$350,000  and  $400,000. 

The  total  cost  of  the  Des  Plaines  drainage  project  would  therefore  be,  for 
the  main  district,  between  $20,250,000  and  $24,550,000;  for  the  Calumet  district, 
between  $2,850,000  and  $3,400,000.  The  annual  cost,  including  interest,  etc.,  is 
estimated  at  about  $1.300,000  per  annum. 

The  pollution  of  the  lake  can  be  decreased  and  the  present  condition  of  the 
Chicago  River,  and  particularly  of  the  South  Fork,  can  be  improved  by  the 
immediate  construction  of  the  following  works,  which,  with  the  exception  of  the 
pumping  works  at  the  South  Fork  discharging  into  the  Illinois  and  Michigan 
Canal,  are  all  a  part  of  the  final  plan. 

1.  Channels  diverting  the  flood  waters  of  the  Des  Plaines,  North  Branch,  and 
Salt  Creek,  as  described  above. 

2.  A  modification  of  the  Fullerton  avenue  pumping  station  and  the  construc- 
tion of  locks  for  the  purpose  of  getting  circulation  in  the  North  Branch. 

3.  A  separate  system  of  sewers  to  collect  the  sewage  now  flowing  into  the 
lake  from  the  south  division  and  to  discharge  it  into  the  South  Fork. 

4.  A  waterway  extending  from  the  western  end  of  the  South  Fork  to  the 
Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal,  with  a  new  pumping  station  to  promote  circula- 
tion. 

5.  By  raising  the  banks  of  the  canal  and  by  removing  deposits  this  capacity 
can  be  increased  40  per  cent  at  a  small  cost,  and  thus  provide  for  a  greater 
flow  of  water  in  the  same. 

The  cost  of  the  works  comprised  under  these  five  items  is  estimated  to  be  be- 
tween $5,000,000  and  $5,500,000.  They  could  be  finished  in  three  years,  and 
would  greatly  lessen  the  liability  of  polluting  the  water  supply,  while  the  sew- 
age would  be  disposed  of  in  the  best  practicable  manner  until  the  final  comple- 
tion of  the  Des  Plaines  project. 

It  therefore  appears  that  this  project  is  decidedly  the  least  expensive  one  for 
the  present  as  well  as  for  the  future. 

Besides  the  economical  advantage  of  the  Des  Plaines  scheme,  its  superiority 
is  still  further  emphasized  by  advantages  of  another  kind.  The  proposed  canal 
will,  from  its  necessary  dimensions  and  its  regular  discharge,  produce  a  magnifi- 
cent waterway  between  Chicago  and  the  Mississippi  River,  suitable  for  the  navi- 
gation of  boats  having  as  much  as  2.000  tons  burden.  It  will  establish  an  avail- 
able water  power  between  Lockport  and  Marseilles  fully  twice  as  large  as  that 
of  the  Mississippi  River  at  Minneapolis,  which  will  be  of  great  commercial  value 
to  the  State.  The  Calumet  region  will  be  much  enhanced  in  value  by  having  a 
direct  navigable  channel  to  the  Des  Plaines  River  and  by  a  lowering  of  the  flood 
heights  of  Calumet  Lake  and  River.  Within  the  city  the  water  of  the  Chicago 
River  and  its  South  Branch  will  get  a  much  better  circulation  if  it  flows  by  grav- 
ity than  if  it  lias  to  be  pumped,  the  necessity  for  which  would  remain  even  if 
the  sewage  should  be  discharged  through  intercepting  sewers,  either  into  the  lake 
or  upon  land.  Upon  either  of  the  latter  conditions  an  occasional  overflow  from 
the  sewers  into  the  river  during  heavy  rains  would  be  more  objectionable  than  a 
constant  discharge  of  sewage  into  a  more  rapidly  flowing  stream.  Flood  waters 
entering  the  lake  by  way  of  the  Chicago  River  would  carry  inter  it  much  filthy 
matter,  either  suspended  or  deposited,  notwithstanding  the  existence  of  inter- 
cepting sewers,  but  the  proposed  diversion  of  such  waters  before  reaching  the 
populated  districts  will  for  all  time  obviate  this  undesirable  occurrence.  Lower- 
ing the  level  of  the  North  Branch  at  Bowmanville  by  its  diversion  to  the  lake 
will  be  equivalent  to  raising  the  low  prairie  extending  toward  Evanston  and 
Niles  and  greatly  benefit  parts  of  these  towns. 


27 

THE    WATER    SUPPLY. 

In  reaching  the  conclusion  that  the  sewage  of  the  city  should  be  discharged 
into  the  Mississippi  Valley  the  question  of  water  supply  is  materially  simpli- 
fied, because  the  lake  will  then  at  all  times  furnish  good  water  wherever  intakes 
are  desired  for  an  extension  of  the  works. 

The  preliminary  inquiry  made  with  a  view  to  ascertain  the  main  features  of 
an  increased  supply  comprised,  first,  a  compilation  of  data  concerning  the 
existing  works  both  in  Chicago  and  its  surburban  towns,  which  were  collected 
mainly  through  the  courtesy  of  the  respective  authorities;  and,  secondly,  a 
study  into  the  most  economical  method  of  distributing  the  water  over  the 
metropolitan  area.  The  following  is  a  brief  description  of  the  existing  works : 

The  present  intake  for  the  public  water  supply  of  Chicago  is  located  in  Lake 
Michigan  about  2  miles  from  shore  and  the  water  is  conducted  to  the  city  in 
two  circular  brick  tunnels  5  and  7  feet  in  diameter.  They  extend  parallel  to 
each  other  under  the  bed  of  the  lake,  and  50  feet  apart,  to  the  north  pumping 
works,  where  they  are  connected  and  where  the  5-foot  tunnel  terminates.  The 
7-foot  tunnel  is  continued  under  the  city  for  a  distance  of  20,500  feet,  to  supply 
the  west  works,  on  Ashland  avenue  near  Twenty-second  street. 

The  tunnels  from  the  source  to  the  shore  are  built  at  a  depth  of  80  feet 
below  city  datum,  or  low  water  in  the  lake,  and  the  7-foot  tunnel  is  continued 
on  the  same  level  for  a  distance  of  about  11,500  feet,  where,  to  avoid  rock 
excavation,  it  is  inclined  upward  until,  at  the  west  pumping  station,  the  top 
is  but  21  feet  below  city  datum.  The  economical  capacity  of  the  two  tunnels 
is  between  90,000,000  and  100,000,000  gallons  per  day,  or  less  than  the  present 
average  daily  consumption  of  water.  Their  maximum  capacity  is  reached  when 
delivering  about  150,000,000  gallons  per  day,  which  is  now  nearly  equaled  by 
the  demand  during  the  hours  of  greatest  consumption,  and  at  the  present  rate 
of  increase  it  is  estimated  that  during  the  summer  of  1887  the  maximum 
demand  for  water  will  be  at  the  rate  of  145,000,000  gallons  per  day;  during 
1888,  150,000,000  gallons  per  day ;  during  1899,  167,000,000  gallons  per  day ;  and 
in  1890  180,000,000  gallons  per  day. 

To  provide  against  accident  or  obstruction  from  ice  or  other  cause  in  the 
main  tunnels,  and  to  provide  against  an  inadequate  supply  in  the  near  future, 
which  appeared  inevitable,  a  new  tunnel  is  in  progress  of  construction.  The 
intake  is  located  1,500  feet  from  shore,  and  connection  is  made  with  the  other 
tunnels  at  the  north  pumping  works. 

The  distribution  of  the  water  is  effected  by  pumping  it  directly  into  the 
water  mains  at  the  north  and  west  stations.  At  the  north  works  the  three  tun- 
nels are  so  arranged  and  constructed  that  any  one  of  them  can  be  emptied 
when  desired  for  repairs  or  cleaning,  and  both  the  pumping  stations  still  be 
supplied  with  water  from  the  other  tunnels.  The  total  pumping  capacity  of 
this  station  is  at  present  67,000,000  gallons  per  day,  but  it  will  be  increased  to 
91,000,000  gallons  per  day  as  soon  as  the  new  pumps  now  in  process  of  erection 
are  in  operation. 

The  connections  between  the  pumps,  standpipes,  and  the  distribution  mains 
at  these  works  have  become  so  complex  by  the  successive  additions  to  the  plant 
that  an  unnecessary  loss  of  head  is  the  consequence.  As  this  can  be  remedied 
to  some  extent  without  great  expense,  we  recommend  that  it  be  done  at  the 
first  favorable  opportunity.  The  station  being  on  the  shore  of  the  lake,  is  not 
centrally  located  with  reference  to  any  part  of  the  city,  which  renders  it  nec- 
essary to  use  a  greater  length  of  main  pipe,  with  a  consequent  loss  of  pressure, 
to  reach  the  consumers  than  would  otherwise  be  the  case.  The  total  pumping 
capacity  of  the  west  side  station  is  60,000,000  gallons  per  day,  and  the  con- 
nections between  the  pumps,  standpipes,  and  mains  are  simple  and  effective,  and 
the  loss  of  pressure  from  this  cause  is  a  minimum.  The  location  is  better 
adapted  to  secure  economical  and  satisfactory  results  than  that  of  the  north 
works,  and  with  reference  to  additional  pumping  stations,  which  will  later  be 
necessary  in  other  parts  of  the  city,  these  works  are  well  situated. 

The  following  table  compiled  from  the  annual  reports  for  1884  and  1885  gives 
a  detailed  comparison  of  the  cost  of  pumping  at  two  stations,  anthracite  coal 
being  used  at  the  north  side  and  good  bituminous  coal  n.t  the  west  side : 


28 


Cost  of  pumping  1,000,000  gallons  1  foot  high." 


188 

4. 

18, 

35. 

North  side. 

West  side. 

North  side. 

West  side. 

Salaries  

$0.01488 

SO.  02022 

SO.  01560 

SO.  01667 

Fuel  . 

05313 

02855 

.04590 

.02482 

Lubricants  .  .  . 

.00064 

.00186 

.00057 

.00160 

Miscellaneous 

00323 

.00417 

.00133 

.00401 

Total... 

07188 

05480 

.06340 

.04710 

The  hydraulic  merits  of  the  system  are  shown  on  the  diagram  of  water  pres- 
sures from  a  survey  made  in  Dec-ember,  188G.  The  pressures  have  all  been  re- 
duced to  a  common  height  above  city  datum  and  to  a  uniform  height  of  water 
at  the  works.  That  diagram  shows  a  greater  loss  of  head  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
north  side  station  than  at  the  west  side.  This  is  accounted  for  by  the  complex 
arrangements  heretofore  mentioned,  and  also  by  the  relatively  small  area  of 
mains,  being  only  16i  square  feet  at  the  north  side  and  over  21  square  feet  at 
the  west  side.  Nearly  equal  quantities  of  water  are  pumped  at  each  of  the 
stations  during  the  middle  of  the  day. 

The  following  table  shows  the  pumping  capacity  of  all  the  suburban  towns 
having  a  public  water  supply,  and  the  pressure  ordinarily  maintained  at  the 
works.  With  the  exception  of  South  Evanston,  all  take  water  from  Lake 
Michigan : 


Locality. 

Individual  pump 
capacity. 

Total 
pumping 
capacity 
per  day. 

Ordinary 
head  at 
pump,  in 
feet. 

Pumps. 

Capacity 
per  day. 

Hvde  Park 

2 
1 
2 
2 
1 
1. 
1 
1 

Gallon*. 
3,000,000 
12,000,000 
4,  000,  000 
2,000,000 
5,000,000 
3,000,000 
2,000,000 
3,000,000 

Do  

18,000,000 

103  to  150 

Lake 

Do  

12,000,000 

100  to  190 

Lake  View 

Do  

10,000,000 

92 
92 
92 

Do 

Village  of  Evanston  

3,  000,  000 

Total 


43,  000, 000 


At  the  artesian  well  supplying  the  village  of  South  Evanston  there  is  a  head 
of  about  53  feet. 

The  pressure  at  different  parts  of  the  pipe  system  is  very  irregular.  In 
Hyde  Park  it  varies  from  165  feet  at  the  pumps  to  10  or  12  feet  at  Forty-third 
street.  In  the  Towrn  of  Lake  the  average  head  at  the  town  hall  is  reported 
about  10  feet,  with  188  feet  at  the  pumps.  In  Evanston.  South  Evanston,  and 
Lake  View  the  difference  of  head  in  various  parts  of  the  villages  is  not  very 
great. 

The  following  table  gives  a  comparison  of  the  consumption  and  cost  of 
water  in  Chicago  and  the  suburban  towns : 


Locality. 

Year. 

Average 
head  at 
pumps. 

Average 
daily 
pumpage. 

Cost  per 
1,000,000 
gallons, 
delivered. 

Cost  of 
pumping 
1,000,000 
gallons  1 
foot  high. 

Chicago  (North  Side) 

1885 

113 

38  369  134 

87.17 

90.  06034 

Chicago  (West  Side) 

1885 

105 

53,  280,  880 

4.95 

.  04071 

Evanston  (village)  

1886 

113 

787,  000 

17.00 

.15000 

Lake  View 

1886 

1  983  000 

11.85 

Town  of  Lake 

1886 

163 

7,292,023 

8.80 

.05400 

Hyde  Park 

1886 

3  410  000 

8.92 



0  Here  appears  a  "  diagram  showing  water  pressure  in  the  Chicago  water  pipes." 
here  reproduced. 


Not 


29 

The  second  point  of  inquiry  was  a  study  into  the  most  economical  method  of 
distributing  the  water  over  the  metropolitan  area.  We  will  at  present  refer  to 
it  but  very  briefly,  mentioning  only  such  conclusions  as  pertain  to  the  immediate 
demands  and  leaving  a  fuller  discussion  of  the  details  of  this  important  question 
to  the  final  report. 

The  comparatively  level  area  upon  which  the  city  is  located,  and  the  practica- 
bility of  taking  the  water  from  the  lake  along  the  city  front  at  any  desired  point, 
after  the  sewage  has  been  diverted,  permits  the  most  economical  distribution  to 
be  ascertained  by  mathematical  investigation  to  a  much  greater  degree  of  exact- 
ness than  is  usually  possible. 

It  is  found  to  be  less  expensive  for  the  densely  populated  areas  to  have 
pumping  stations  about  2. or  3  miles  apart,  because  the  loss  of  head  and  cost 
of  mains  and  pumping  to  obtain  the  least  allowable  pressure  are  thus  reduced 
to  a  minimum.  In  planning  new  works  this  fact  should  be  considered,  and  loca- 
tions so  selected  that  they  will  be  advantageous  for  the  future  as  well  as  for 
the  present. 

The  localities  which  we  believe  to  be  most  suitable  for  additional  pumping 
stations  are  near  Twelfth  street,  in  the  central  part  of  the  city ;  near  the  Union 
Stock  Yards ;  near  Humboldt  Park,  and  near  Fullerton  and  Racine  avenues. 

When  it  is  considered  that  at  the  present  time  the  pumps  are  delivering 
during  the  busy  part  of  the  day  at  the  rate  of  120,000,000  gallons  in  twenty- 
four  hours,  which  is  nearly  the  maximum  capacity  of  all  the  machinery,  and 
that  even  with  this  large  consumption  of  water  it  is  impossible  in  some  parts 
of  the  city  to  obtain  water  in  the  second  story  of  the  buildings,  it  becomes  evi- 
dent that  an  increased  supply  is  imperatively  required,  and  being  a  work  of 
years  to  build  new  tunnels,  inlets,  buildings,  and  machinery,  the  necessity  of 
deciding  upon  the  location  of  the  new  works  as  soon  as  possible  is  readily 
seen.  The  locality  which  is  suffering  most  from  the  want  of  water  is  the  busi- 
ness section  and  the  south  part  of  the  city,  the  lowest  pressure  extending  from 
Twelfth  street  to  the  city  limits.  It  will  become  necessary  in  the  future  to  have 
two  stations  in  this  territory,  one  beween  Harrison  and  Twelfth  streets  and 
the  other  to  be  somewhere  east  of  the  Union  Stock  Yards.  We  are  strongly 
of  the  opinion  that  of  the  two  stations  it  will  be  advisable  and  most  advanta- 
geous to  build  the  one  north  of  Twelfth  street  first,  for  the  following  reasons : 

1.  It  will  require  a  shorter  tunnel  from  the  lake  to  the  proposed  station  and 
less  expenditure  for  main  discharge  pipes  to  connect  with  the  present  system 
than  would  be  the  case  with  the  proposed  southern  station.     This  is  equivalent 
to  less  cost  and  a  saving  of  time  in  construction. 

2.  If  the  southern  station  is  built  first  it  will  require  mains  of  larger  capacity 
leading  toward  the  city  than  will  be  ultimately  necessary  when  the  central 
station  is  built. 

3.  The  location  recommended  is  near  the  center  of  the  greatest  consumption 
of  water,  and  will  be  a  gain  not  only  in  obtaining  greater  pressure  in  the  busi- 
ness district,  but  in  removing  the  cause  for  complaint  on  the  south  side  by  in- 
creasing the  pressure  so  that  the  water  will  flow  to  the  upper  floors  of  the 
highest  dwellings. 

4.  All  other  parts  of  the  city  will  gain  by  the  construction  in  this  location,  as 
the  north  and  west  works  will  be  relieved  of  he  enormous  drain  upon  them  to 
supply  water  for  the  business  part  of  the  city.    They  will  be  better  able  to  give 
a  good  head  on  the  north  and  west  sides,  where  the  population  is  increasing 
very  rapidly,  and  which  will  very  soon  be  in  the  same  unsatisfactory  condition 
as  now  obtains  in  the  southern  end  of  the  city,  unless  relief  is  afforded  in  the 
manner  indicated. 

The  other  pumping  stations  will  gradually  become  necessary  as  the  population 
increases,  and  for  a  population  of  2,500,000  there  will  be  a  need  for  a  total  com- 
bined capacity  of  375,000,000  gallons  to  provide  for  a  daily  consumption  of  150 
gallons  per  head.  With  several  intakes  and  tunnels  the  danger  from  stoppage 
of  the  water  supply  by  ice  or  accident  will  be  reduced  to  a  minimum,  as  it  is 
not  probable  that  more  than  one  of  them  would  be  so  endangered  at  the  same 
time. 

We  believe  that  a  submerged  intake  will  afford  a  more  reliable  and  safer 
structure  so  far  as  injury  from  passing  vessels  and  stoppage  by  ice  are  con- 
cerned than  a  structure  projecting  above  the  water. 

With  the  sewage  kept  out  of  the  lake  there  is  no  need  of  locating  the  intake 
farther  than  2  miles  from  the  shore,  where  water  can  be  obtained  sufficiently 
free  from  suspended  earthly  matter,  and  where  a  depth  of  about  30  feet  is 
generally  found,  which  is  the  least  depth  desirable  for  a  submerged  inlet 


30 

(JKNKKAi.    REMARKS. 
t, 

After  presenting  the  results  thus  far  gained,  indicating  the  general  solution 
of  the  Chicago  drainage  and  water-supply  problem,  it  remains  to  point  out 
certain  fact*  which  may  be  useful  in  discussing  some  of  the  legal  measures 
required  to  carry  out  the  proposed  work.  We  desire  to  state  that  in  order 
to  reach  the  best  results  it  is  imperative  to  have  all  the  main  drainage  works, 
such  as  intercepting  sewers,  waterways,  and  pumping  stations,  executed  and 
maintained  under  a  single  management.  It  would  be  economical  also  to 
design  and  operate  the  main  works  for  supplying  water  to  the  entire  metro- 
politan area  on  a  uniform  plan  and  under  one  management,  for  the  same 
reason  that  it  is  economical  to  keep  the  north  and  west  side  pumping  works 
under  one  control,  thus  giving  facilities  as  far  as  practicable  for  a  supply 
proportioned  to  the  demand  to  the  entire  metropolitan  area,  including  the 
towns  not  bordering  on  the  lake.  We  do  not  wish  to  imply,  however,  that 
such  a  general  .aithority  need  necessarily  extend  further  than  to  the  con- 
struction and  maintenance  of  the  tunnels  and  conduits  furnishing  water  to 
the  respective  pumping  works. 

Regarding  the  limits  for  metropolitan  drainage,  the  investigation  has  shown, 
as  already  indicated,  that  topographical  conditions  clearly  define  two  districts 
for  the  future  metropolis.  The  main  district  extends  from  the  line  of  Eighty- 
seventh  street  on  the  south  to  the  north  line  of  Evanston  and  from  the  lake 
westward  to  the  l)es  Plaines  River.  Its  sewage  is  collected  into  one  channel 
and  discharged  into  the  Des  IMaines  Valley  at  Summit.  The  Calumet  district 
extends  over  the  natural  drainage  area  of  Calumet  Lake  and  River  south  of 
Eighty-seventh  street,  and  has  its  outfall  channel  running  from  Blue  Island  to 
Sag. 

The  final  report  will  contain  several  maps,  showing  certain  features  of  the 
metropolitan  area,  namely,  the  distribution  of  the  population  in  1886,  the  exist- 
ing works  and  main  distribution  pipes  for  water  supply,  and  the  existing  main 
sewerage  works  and  5-foot  contour  lines  over  nearly  the  entire  area.  It  will 
also  contain  maps  and  profiles  of  the  proposed  waterways  and  storm-water- 
diversion  channels  mentioned  in  the  present  report,  and  a  map  showing  the  lines 
of  the  main  collecting  and  intercepting  sewers  of  the  proposed  drainage  dis- 
tricts, and  also  the  lines  of  new  tunnels  and  the  general  distribution  of  the 
water  supply. 

In  carrying  on  the  present  investigation  its  various  branches  are  placed  in 
charge  of  the  following  gentlemen,  of  whose  ability  and  industry  we  desire  to 
make  special  mention :  Mr.  L.  E.  Cooley,  principal  assistant,  had  special  charge 
of  the  hydrographic  work ;  Mr.  Charles  H.  Swan,  of  the  sewage  disposal  on 
land;  Mr.  Francis  Murphy,  of  the  topographical  work;  Mr.  O.  Guthrie,  of  the 
river  pollution,  land  damages,  etc.,  and  Mr.  T.  T.  Johnson,  of  the  water  supply, 
sewerage,  and  miscellaneous  work. 

Respectfully  submitted. 

RUDOLPH  HEBING, 

Chief  Engineer. 
BENEZETTE  WILLIAMS, 
SAMUEL  G.  ARTINGSTALL, 

Consulting  Engineers. 


APPENDIX  B. 

CHICAGO,  June  29,  1906. 

DEAR  GENERAL:  On  May  28  I  replied  at  length  to  your  inquiries  of  May  26 
concerning  the  final  report  of  the  drainage  and  water  supply  commission  and  the 
disposition  of  the  materials  which  had  been  collected.  Under  date  of  May  31 
you  now  ask  for — 

"  The  sanitary  authority  upon  which  rests  the  requirement  of  the  Illinois  State 
law  that  20,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  must  be  diverted  into  the  Chicago  Drain- 
age Canal  for  every  100,000  inhabitants." 

And  again — 

"  How  much  water  is  really  required  to  dilute  the  sewage?  " 

The  proper  answer  to  your  questions  involves  a  review  of  the  considerations 
which  determines  the  ratio  of  dilution  in  the  sanitary  district  law  and  the 


31 

justification  for  the  same.  I  have  therefore  delayed  this  answer  in  order  to 
consult  original  documents  and  memoranda.  I  have  not  undertaken  to  refer 
exhaustively  to  my  records,  as  I  am  pressed  for  time,  and  my  memory  is  entirely 
clear  upon  the  essential  facts. 

The  essence  of  the  law  is  contained  in  sections  20  and  23  of  "An  act  to  create 
sanitary  districts  and  to  remove  obstructions  in  the  Des  Plaines  and  Illinois 
rivers"  (passed  May  29,  1889,  in  force  July  1,  1889).  Section  20  states:  "Any 
channel  or  outlet  *  *  *  shall  be  of  sufficient  size  and  capacity  to  produce  a 
continuous  flow  of  water  of  at  least  200  cubic  feet  per  minute  for  each  1,000  of 
the  population  of  the  district  drained  thereby,  and  the  same  shall  be  kept  and 
maintained  of  such  size  and  in  such  condition  that  the  water  thereof  will  be 
neither  offensive  or  injurious  to  the  health  of  the  people  in  this  State."  Section 
23  states :  "  Such  channel  shall  be  made  and  kept  of  such  size  and  in  such  condi- 
tion that  it  will  produce  and  maintain  at  all  times  a  continuous  flow  of  not  less 
than  20,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  minute  for  each  100,000  of  the  population  of 
such  district." 

Section  23  states  further :  "  Such  channel  shall  be  constructed  of  sufficient  size 
and  capacity  to  produce  and  maintain  at  all  times  a  continuous  flow  of  not  less 
than  300,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  minute,  *  *  *  and  if  any  portion  of  any 
such  channel  shall  be  cut  through  a  territory  with  a  rocky  stratum  *  *  * 
such  portion  of  said  channel  shall  have  double  the  flowing  capacity  above  pro- 
vided for." 

You  will  see  that  the  law  insists  on  a  sanitary  condition,  and  that  the  flow  of 
water  shall  be  continuous  (at  all  times),  and  that  the  minimum  dilution  shall  be 
(not  less  than)  20,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  minute  for  each  100,000  people. 
This  indicates  that  the  general  assembly  did  not  regard  the  ratio  of  dilution  as 
a  positive  determination,  and  this  accords  with  the  facts.  You  will  note  further 
that  the  channel  was  to  be  cut  through  the  rock  with  a  minimum  capacity  of 
600,000  cubic  feet  per  minute,  and  that  the  channel  in  the  clay  was  to  be  subject 
to  progressive  enlargement  from  a  capacity  of  300,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  with 
the  growth  of  population  above  1,500,000. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  rocky  stratum  extended  from  Lockport  to  Summit, 
and  the  channel  was  actually  constructed  of  the  larger  capacity,  leaving  only 
7.76  miles  between  Summit  and  the  waters  of  the  Chicago  River  for  future 
enlargement.  When  the  channel  was  opened  January  17,  1900,  the  population 
of  the  district  exceeded  1,500,000  and  was,  in  fact,  1,637,972  by  the  Federal 
census  of  1900.  By  act  of  the  general  assembly  in  1903  the  district  was 
enlarged,  and  the  population  by  census,  within  the  new  boundaries,  was 
1,775,596. 

I  had  everything  to  do  in  determining  the  prime  essentials  of  the  sanitary 
district  law  above  quoted.  I  projected  the  work  in  its  substantial  outlines 
in  a  report  which  I  drafted  for  the  committee  of  the  Citizens'  Association  in 
September,  1885.  (Ossion  Guthrie,  Dr.  Frank  Reilly,  and  Lyman  E.  Cooley 
were  a  subcommittee  to  examine  the  situation  and  report)  As  chief  assistant 
to  the  Drainage  and  Water  Supply  Commission  in  1886-87,  I  had  charge,  among 
other  things,  of  the  canal  solution.  I  was  consulting  engineer  to  the  State 
board  of  health  in  1887-1889,  and  again  in  1891  while  its  elaborate  chemical 
investigation  of  the  stream  between  Lake  Michigan  and  St.  Louis  was  under 
way.  I  was  consulting  engineer  to  the  joint  committee  of  the  legislature 
(mayor  of  Chicago,  ex-officio,  chairman)  that  framed  the  sanitary  district 
act,  and  as  such  determined  the  features  of  the  law  referred  to.  I  later  repre- 
sented before  the  general  assembly  the  several  organizations  of  Chicago  which 
were  engaged  in  promoting  legislation. 

The  state  of  our  information  in  1887  in  regard  to  dilution  and  the  capacity 
of  channel  required  is  discussed  at  some  length  in  my  testimony  of  April  7, 
1887,  before  the  joint  committee  of  the  general  assembly.  A  few  hundred  copies 
of  this  were  printed,  but  I  do  not  know  where  an  extra  copy  is  to  be  had.  I 
refer  to  this  especially  because  it  is  the  only  published  matter  of  that  period 
after  the  preliminary  report.  I  will  also  refer  you  to  an  elaborate  paper  which 
discusses  the  subject-matter,  read  on  June  10,  1896,  before  the  National  Con- 
ference of  State  Boards  of  Health  at  Chicago.  This  was  published  by  the 
secretary  at  Columbus,  Ohio,  and  is  hard  to  get.  Ther*  were,  of  course,  many 
fugitive  and  fragmentary  discussions  not  considered  worthy  of  preservation. 

You  will  note  in  the  preliminary  report  and  in  later  testimony,  that  the 
Drainage  and  Water  Supply  Commission  refers  to  a  dilution  of  24,000  cubic 
feet  per  minute  as  ample  for  a  sanitary  condition,  and  I  believe  that  Mr. 
Horing,  the  chief  of  that  commission,  has  stated  that  was  his  personal  view  of 


32 

the  requirements.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  capacity  of  the  channel  vcas  fixed 
nt  that  time  at  600,000  feet  as  require*!  to  remove  the  flood  water  from  some 
420 -square  miles  of  territory  (after  the  diversion  of  the  upper  Des  Plaines 
River),  and  prevent  the  same  from  backing  into  the  lake.  The  basis  of  popula- 
tion used  in  considering  land  disposal  and  other  alternative  solutions  proposed 
was  2,o(!0,000,  and  this  figure  was  applied  to  the  proposed  channel  capacity, 
giving  the  ratio  of  24,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  for  each  100,000  people  as 
above  stated.  At  that  time  only  preliminary  consideration  had  been  given  to 
the  question  of  dilution,  as  the  chief  force  of  the  investigation  had  been  applied 
to  other  alternative  solutions. 

I  think  it  is  also  in  evidence  before  the  joint  committee  of  the  general  assem- 
bly in  1887,  by  Doctor  Ranch,  secretary  of  the  State  board  of  health,  that  14,000 
cubic  feet  per  minute  would  be  sufficient.  Doctor  Ranch  had  undertaken  an 
investigation  of  the  subject  preliminary  to  the  elaborate  studies  of  1888-89. 
After  the  adjournment  of  the  legislature  and  the  failure  of  the  Kurd  bill  in 
1887,  little  further  attention  was  given  to  the  matter  until  it  was  taken  up  by 
the  special  committee  appointed  to  frame  a  law  and  report  to  the  next  general 
assembly. 

This  committee  had  several  hearings,  and  developed  much  diversity  of  opinion. 
Personal  opinions  ranged  from  14.(KiO  feet  per  minute  to  30,000  feet,  and  some 
wished  to  leave  the  matter  entirely  open.  As  no  agreement  could  be  reached, 
the  whole  subject  was  referred  to  the  consulting  engineer  late  in  1888.  and  after 
a  painstaking  investigation,  he  reported,  and  the  results  were  embodied  in  the 
draft  of  the  bill  and  subsequently  became  law. 

The  data  available  are  referred  to  as  follows: 

"  Special  investigations  of  the  filth-producing  industries  of  Chicago,  and  an 
elaborate  investigation  of  the  Chicago  River  and  branches  in  the  autumn  of 
1886,  and  after  the  flood  of  1887,  also  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal ;  a  care- 
ful investigation  of  the  history  and  condition  of  sewage  in  the  Des  Plaines  and 
Illinois  rivers  for  the  fifteen  years  prior  to  1887,  between  Joliet  and  La  Salle ; 
the  chemical  investigations  by  the  State  board  of  health,  over  the  route  from 
Lake  Michigan  to  the  city  of  St.  Louis,  and  of  tributary  streams,  and  a  special 
investigation  of  the  conditions  produced  by  the  distillers  at  Peora  and  Pekin." 

The  above  data  were  probably  more  ample  than  had  ever  been  brought  before 
to  the  consideration  of  a  similar  problem.  In  addition,  there  were  the  following 
documents :  Reports  on  the  condition  of  the  Seine  at  and  below  Paris ;  reports 
on  the  sewage-disposal  works  at  Berlin,  then  being  inaugurated ;  three  reports 
by  parliamentary  commissions  on  river  pollution  in  Great  Britain ;  reports  on 
pollution  of  streams  by  the  State  board  of  health  of  Massachusetts ;  reports  by 
Doctor  Chandler  on  the  pollution  of  the  Passaic  River,  New  Jersey. 

In  addition,  the  consulting  engineer  had  made  special  notes  on  the  low-water 
condition  of  the  Ohio  River  and  of  the  Upper  Mississippi  River,  and  on  several 
other  streams,  in  comparison  with  population. 

The  general  result  arrived  at  was  that  14,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  would  be 
adequate  for  a  normal  city  population  such  as  usually  obtained  in  New  England 
and  in  Europe,  but  that  this  ratio  should  be  increased  about  50  per  cent  on 
account  of  the  special  industries  characteristic  of  Chicago  and  the  quality  of 
her  site — flat  topography,  with  impermeable  subsoil.  At  that  time — and  we 
still  have  great  industries  based  on  animal  and  other  organic  products — the 
wastes  coming  from  the  stock  yards  and  rendering  establishments  alone  were 
estimated  as  the  sewage  equivalent  of  a  normal  city  of  700,000  people.  Every 
effort  had  been  made,  and  is  still  being  made,  to  utilize  these  organic  wastes,  and 
great  progress  had  been  made  in  the  previous  twenty  years,  but  nevertheless  it 
was  thought  wise  to  provide  sufficiently  for  all  conditions  rather  than  subject 
any  industry  to  special  burdens.  These  considerations  raised  the  dilution  ratio 
to  20,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  as  a  minimum,  and  it  was  so  recommended. 

At  that  time  we  had  distilleries  in  Chicago  which  were  serious  offenders,  but 
they  li:sve  since  closed  down.  1  examined  the  distilleries  at  Peoria  in  1801, 
when  40.000  head  of  cattle  were  fed  on  the  slops,  and  I  found  that  the  fish 
were  destroyed  for  24  miles  down  the  river  in  the  low-water  season.  It  was 
noted  that  the  conditions  were  worse  when  the  raw  slops  were  run  directly 
into  the  river,  as  the  cattle  were  not  then  present  to  ivdu-.-o  the  decomposition 
by  several  stages.  In  this  industry  I  understand  that  these  wastes  are  now 
evaporated  and  pressed  into  cake  and  sold  for  stock  food. 

In  the  rendering  business  there  is  a  highly  concentrated  effluent  from  the 
tanks,  which  would  resemble  consume  soup  if  it  were  filtered  and  deodorized, 
and  this  lias  defied  all  chemical  science  for  ils  salvation.  Hopes  were  enter- 


33 

tained  of  converting  it  into  commercial  ammoni:t  l>y  destructive  distillation,  but 
Ibis  did  not  prove  practicable  on  a  commercial  scale.  I  believe  that  sometime 
tbese  valuable  wastes  will  be  commercially  utilized,  and  when  this  is  done  a 
great  burden  will  be  taken  off  the  Chicago  Drainage  Canal.  It  seemed  to  me 
that  if  it  was  not  possible  to  make  an  economic  use  of  these  concentrated  efflu- 
ents, the  profitable  disposal  of  household  sewage  with  the  enormous  volumes 
of  water  used  in  American  cities  was  absolutely  hopeless.  At  that  time  the 
sentiment  of  sanitarians  was  very  strongly  against  what  we  proposed  as  a 
barbarism.  The  experience  of  nearly  twenty  years  since  has  fully  borne  out 
the  noneconoinic  character  of  sewage-disposal  works,  and  the  Chicago  solution 
has  come  to  be  accepted  as  rational  where  the  conditions  permit. 

I  was  not  satisfied  with  our  data  in  regard  to  the  stock-yards  district,  and 
when  chief  engineer  of  the  sanitary  district  in  1890  I  undertook  a  special  chemi- 
cal investigation,  continued  over  a  period  of  time,  of  every  outfall  entering  the 
South  Fork.  The  work  was  completed,  but  I  ceased  to  be  chief  engineer  before 
the  results  were  fully  worked  out.  At  the  same  time  I  made  a  continued  series 
of  chemical  analyses  of  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal,  which  was  then  being 
operated  to  a  capacity  of  over  50,000  cubic  feet  per  minute.  These  investigations 
cost  some  $6,000.  I  became  satisfied  that  I  had  not  overestimated  the  special 
source  of  filth.  It  was  my  intention  to  carry  the  inquiry  over  the  entire  city  and 
do  what  had  never  been  done  before — ascertain  the  sewage  of  a  great  munici- 
pality as  a  whole.  If  I  had  had  my  way  in  the  matter  we  would  have  had  more 
positive  data  as  to  the  sewage  equivalent  and  the  volume  of  Lake  Michigan  water 
required.  Our  boards  of  trustees  have  not  since  encouraged  the  resumption  of 
any  such  work,  and  indeed  it  has  been  regarded  as  needless  by  those  in  authority 
after  the  sanitary-district  law  had  been  passed  and  the  work  actually  entered 
upon. 

No  extended  investigations  were  again  undertaken  until  the  biological  and 
chemical  examinations  of  1899  and  1900  were  made  by  the  cooperation  of  the 
health  department  of  the  city  of  Chicago,  the  Chicago  University,  and  the  Uni- 
versity of  Illinois. 

This  investigation  was  instigated  by  Dr.  Prank  W.  Reilly,  then  and  now  assist- 
ant health  commissioner  of  Chicago,  after  consultation  with  the  writer.  Doctor 
Reilly  was  assistant  secretary  of  the  State  board  of  health  during  the  investiga- 
tions of  1881-1885,  and  in  1886  collated  the  results  of  Prof.  J.  H.  Long's 
chemical  examinations  of  the  contents  of  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal  and 
of  the  Illinois  River  and  its  tributaries  as  far  south  as  Peoria.  These  examina- 
tions were  projected  by  Dr.  J.  H.  Rauch,  secretary  of  the  State  board,  and  were 
directly  supervised  by  Doctor  Reilly.  His  study  and  collation  of  Professor 
Long's  analyses  demonstrated  that  all  trace  of  Chicago  sewage  pollution  dis- 
appeared in  a  flow  of  48  miles  from  its  source — that  is,  between  Bridgeport  at 
the  entrance  of  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal  and  the  town  of  Channahon 
on  the  Des  Plaines  River,  after  this  stream  had  received  the  discharge  from 
the  canal.  This  demonstration  completely  upset  the  time-honored  dictum  of 
previous  water  analyses  "  that  no  river  on  earth  is  long  enough  to  purify 
itself  after  it  has  become  contaminated  with  organic  wastes."  Six  years  later, 
in  1892,  Pottenkofer  fully  corroborated  Doctor  Reilly's  demonstration. 

Doctor  Reilly  and  myself  were  associated  in  all  the  early  promotion  of  the 
sanitary  project,  and  he  is  the  only  person  that  I  know  upon  whom  you  can 
call  for  a  history  of  the  subject-matter  of  this  letter. 

The  biological  examinations  were  entirely  confirmatory  of  the  results  of  the 
investigations  of  1888-89,  but  have  the  merit  of  less  confusion  in  interpreta- 
tion. The  State  board  of  health  has  since  recompiled  and  extended  the  results 
of  its  stream  examinations  and  published  a  report  in  1903.  The  University 
of  Illinois  has  been  making  for  several  years  past  a  biological  investigation  of 
the  waters  of  the  Illinois  River,  but  with  no  special  reference  to  the  matters 
under  consideration.  I  do  not  refer  to  data  of  an  ex  parte  character  gathered 
in  the  Chicago-St.  Louis  suit  recently  decided  by  the  United  States  Supreme 
Court. 

None  of  this  later  material  nor  the  added  experience  and  reflection  of  nearly 
twenty  years  has  changed  my  mind  in  regard  to  the  ratio  of  dilution  as  given 
in  1888  and  incorporated  in  the  sanitary  district  law.  I  do  not  think  I  could 
make  a  better  determination  at  this  time.  I-  feel  bound  to  say,  however,  that 
we  have  not  yet  had  the  final  demonstration  of  experience.  We  shall  not  posi- 
tively know  until  the  intercepting  sewer  system  is  completed  and  in  operation, 
the  South  Fork  in  active  circulation,  and  also  the  North  Branch,  so  that  the 


34 

canal  receives  the  entire  output  of  the  city  north  of  Eighty-seventh  street  in 
a  comparatively  fresh  condition.  I  havfe  been  apprehensive  that  these  contribu- 
tions would  be  made  before  the  Chicago  River  is  sufficiently  improved  to 
furnish  the  necessary  volume  of  water  to  promptly  dilute  the  same.  The  anal- 
yses show  a  higher  ratio  per  capita  for  chlorine  and  nitrogen,  but  this  was 
anticipated.  They  also  show  a  large  proportion  down  the  old  canal,  which, 
owing  to  the  situation  of  its  inlet,  receives  largely  the  output  of  the  South  Fork, 
but  this  was  also  anticipated.  The  evidence  as  to  chlorine  is  to  be  taken  with 
caution  on  account  of  the  large  use  of  salt  in  many  of  our  industries,  but  the 
indications  are  that  Chicago  sewage  may  be  even  richer  than  I  had  presumed 
in  comparison  with  the  sewage  of  normal  cities.  1  have  no  forebodings,  however, 
other  than  as  to  the  policy  which  may  be  pursued  by  the  authorities  of  the 
sanitary  district.  Based  on  the  advice  of  the  consulting  engineer  the  law  is 
abundantly  cautious  in  stating  the  ratio  of  dilution  and  the  capacity  of  chan- 
nel as  niiuimums,  and  in  insisting  on  a  continuous  flow,  but  unhappily  there 
has  been  a  disposition  in  many  quarters  to  interpret  these  minimum  require- 
ments as  maximums. 

You  will  find  in  the  testimony  of  1887  and  the  paper  before  the  National 
Conference  of  State  Boards  of  Health  in  1896,  persistant  reference  to  the  neces- 
sity of  maintaining  the  flow  in  the  winter  time.  The  investigations  show 
clearly  that  the  sewage  travels  farther  down  the  stream  in  the  winter  season 
and  is  more  dangerous  to  fish  life  when  the  oxygen  can  not  be  renewed  owing 
to  an  ice  cover.  The  necessity  for  dilution  is  then  paramount.  In  the  original 
studies  of  an  economic  channel,  made  under  my  direction,  first  by  William  A. 
Lydon  in  1886-87,  and  later  by  Thomas  T.  Johnston  in  1890-91,  the  carrying 
capacity  of  a  channel  covered  by  ice  was  fully  considered.  On  the  present 
channel  the  capacity  will  be  reduced  by  nearly  40  per  cent,  or  to  something  over 
60  per  cent  of  the  capacity  of  an  open  channel. 

In  making  the  studies  for  the  main  channel  we  adopted  the  most  conservative 
coefficients.  The  channel  depth  was  made  nominally  22  feet,  with  an  allowance 
of  over  2  feet  for  fall  between  the  lake  and  the  head  of  the  channel  at  Robey 
street,  but  it  was  understood  that  any  proper  improvement  of  the  Chicago  River 
and  by  other  inlets  would  give  a  depth  of  24  feet  or  more.  rlhe  channel  itself 
was  made  of  better  character  than  originally  anticipated,  owing  to  the  use  of  the 
channeling  machine.  The  effect  has  been  to  give  a  channel  of  nearly  40  per  cent 
greater  capacity  than  the  minimum  stated  in  the  law.  It  was  my  hope  and 
intention  to  produce  a  channel  30  feet  deep,  with  a  capacity  of  1,000,000  feet,  but 
I  was  not  able  to  reach  farther  than  I  have  stated. 

Under  the  original  theory  the  channel  is  not  sufficient  even  now  to  carry 
600,000  feet  of  water  per  minute  under  an  ice  cover.  It  has  been  ingeniously 
answered  that  this  objection  could  be  removed  by  the  use  of  ice  boats,  but  I 
have  a  mental  resistance  to  all  solutions  of  sanitary  problems  that  are  not 
automatic  in  action,  for  sooner  or  later  they  go  awry,  to  the  prejudice  of  the 
public  health. 

It  is  fair  to  say,  however,  that  thus  far  little  ice  has  formed  upon  the  main 
channel  and  that  the  flow  has  been  little  interfered  with  from  this  cause.  This 
has  been  attributed  to  the  large  volumes  of  warm  water  from  households  and 
from  manufacturing  plants,  and  it  is  supposed  also  that  active  sewage  decompo- 
sition may  have  something  to  do  with  it,  and,  further,  that  a  surface  film  of  ole- 
aginous matter  may  afford  some  protection.  Perhaps  these  explanations  are 
after  the  facts,  and  therefore  speculative.  Whatever  may  be  the  cause,  the 
effects  should  be  relatively  less  when  the  channel  shall  be  carrying  the  full  vol- 
ume. And,  again,  the  grand  law  of  average  will  give  us  more  severe  winters 
than  we  have  been  having  since  the  channel  was  opened. 

The  estimates  of  the  carrying  capacity  of  the  main  channel  are  based  as  fol- 
lows (report  of  expert  commission;  see  proceedings  of  board  of  trustees  of 
sanitary  district,  June  19,  1901,  p.  7248)  : 

"  Within  the  past  two  weeks  the  results  of  special  observations  made  since 
this  commission  was  organized,  and  other  relevant  data,  has  enabled  an  approxi- 
mate determination  of  coefficients  by  wThich  to  determine  the  capacity  of  the 
main  channel  under  the  conditions  specified.  To  determine  these  matters  finally, 
however,  requires  a  special  set  of  observations  under  better  weather  conditions 
and  with  the  canal  operated  for  this  purpose." 

The  expert  commission  of  1901  estimated  the  capacity  of  the  channel  on  a 
depth  of  24.4  feet  at  Willow  Springs,  at  836,280  cubic  feet  per  minute,  in  con- 
junction with  a  radical  improvement  of  the  Chicago  River  such  as  would  furnish 
the  entire  supply  of  water  without  detriment  to  navigation.  The  same  commis- 


35 

sion  estimated  the  capacity  on  a  depth  of  24.2  feet  at  Willow  Springs,  at  827,040 
cubic  feet  per  minute  in  conjunction  with  a  moderate  improvement  of  the  Chi- 
cago River  north  of  Sixteenth  street  and  an  inlet  direct  to  the  lake  adjacent  to 
Sixteenth  street  on  the  south.  In  both  cases  the  lake  was  assumed  at  Chicago 
datum,  or  low  water  of  1847.  Bath  of  these  treatments  were  in  harmony  with 
the  theory  of  the  law  and  the  original  project. 

The  sanitary  district  has  adopted,  at  least  for  the  present,  a  channel  through 
the  Chicago  River  200  feet  wide,  which  the  expert  commission  estimated  would 
carry  390,000  feet  of  water  per  minute  without  detriment  to  navigation.  I 
understand  that  it  is  expected  to  feed  to  the  channel  600,000  feet  through  the 
Chicago  River  and  the  Thirty-ninth  street  conduit,  and  that  one-fifth  of  this 
is  to  come  by  way  of  the  conduit  and  the  South  Fork.  I  understand  further 
that  it  is  proposed  to  construct  a  channel  from  the  Calumet  region  through  the 
Sag,  with  a  capacity  of  some  240,000  feet  of  water  per  minute.  The  total  is 
840,000  per  minute,  or  the  14,000  feet  per  second  which  has  been  mentioned  in 
the  hearings  at  Washington  and  before  your  commission. 

You  will  note  in  the  testimony  of  1887  that  the  considerations  which  origi- 
nally fixed  the  channel  at  a  capacity  of  600,000  cubic  feet  per  minute,  was  the 
flood  volume  from  an  area  of  420  square  miles.  Assuming  the  channel  to  have 
a  capacity  of  840,000  cubic  feet  per  minute,  the  flood  equivalent  would  represent 
a  territory  of  not  over  700  square  miles.  To  add  more  territory  is  sure  to  re- 
sult at  some  time  in  the  backing  of  the  waters  into  the  lake.  Sewage  pollution 
is  to  be  regarded  as  most  dangerous  when  the  sewage  is  carried  out  in  a  fresh 
condition  during  floods  and  when  the  city  is  virtually  taking  a  bath,  and  it 
was  such  eruptions  of  flood  waters  from  the  populated  area  which  the  drain- 
age and  water  supply  commission  sought  particularly  to  avoid. 

I  am  therefore  strenuously  opposed  to  all  propositions  which  propose  to  add 
unlimited  territory  to  the  present  channel,  and  which  propose  in  any  manner 
to  sacrifice  part  of  its  capacity  in  the  carrying  of  floods  from  upland  and  rural 
territory.  All  the  great  filth-producing  industries  and  the  great  population  is 
now  tributary,  and  will  so  remain,  to  the  Chicago  River,  its  branches,  and  the 
main  channel ;  and  I  do  not  think  that  the  provision  which  has  been  made  for 
this  territory  is  more  ample  than  should  have  been  provided  for  a  reasonable 
future  growrth.  The  capacity  on  the  present  scale  of  minimum  dilution,  pre- 
suming it  to  be  sufficient,  is  the  equivalent  of  a  population  of  4,200,000.  This 
may  not  actually  be  realized,  but  I  feel  sure  that  the  progressive  saving  of 
wastes  will  eventually  reduce  the  per  capita  output  of  sewage  to  more  nearly 
the  normal  for  other  cities.  We  know  that  such  utilization  has  already  taken 
place  in  connection  with  the  distilleries.  We  also  have  the  police  power,  and 
can  compel  the  care  of  specific  sources  of  nuisance  when  necessity  requires; 
but  as  already  remarked,  such  a  policy  in  connection  with  our  great  industries 
has  not  been  considered  wise. 

I  anticipate,  therefore,  that  as  conditions  develop  in  the  future,  the  channel 
may  prove  sufficient  for  five  or  six  millions  of  people,  provided  the  original 
plans  can  be  carried  out  in  their  integrity.  That  means,  however,  that  the 
capacity  of  the  main  channel  shall  be  reserved  substantially  (and  it  has  been 
planned  and  constructed  on  that  idea)  for  the  territory  of  the  original  district, 
and  that  only  such  provision  shall  be  made  for  outlying  territory  as  the  actual 
necessities  of  its  people  require.  If  we  study  the  relative  growth  of  population 
and  the  character  of  the  industrial  development  in  such  outlying  territories, 
we  shall  be  persuaded  that  such  a  policy  will  do  no  injustice  and  will  conserve 
the  sanitary  purpose  in  the  highest  degree. 

What  is  to  be  the  future  population  of  Chicago,  no  man  can  foresee.  I  think 
we  may  rest  for  the  present  on  an  assumption  of  five  to  six  million  people.  In 
laying  out  the  main  channel  its  tangents  were  made  parallel  to  and  at  a  fixed 
distance  from  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal  where  the  same  was  possible. 
The  idea  under  this  location  was  that  the  old  canal  would  maintain  the  reser- 
vation for  future  use,  and  that  the  time  might  come  when  another  canal  along- 
side would  be  desirable.  My  thought  in  this  matter  was  not  so  much  an  ulti- 
mate thought  on  the  sanitary  question  as  it  was  that  we  might  wish  to  carry 
more  water  to  the  Illinois  River  in  the  interest  of  deeper  navigation.  If  any 
such  proposition  is  considered  beyond  the  provision  .^hich  has  already  been 
made,  the  whole  continent  should  join,  and  we  may  dismiss  it  from  present  con- 
sideration. I  do  believe,  however,  that  the  time  will  come  when  public  opinion 
on  this  continent  will  be  sufficiently  broad  to  make  the  best  use  possible  of  the 
waters  of  the  Great  Lakes,  in  the  interest  of  the  deepest  possible  navigation 
from  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  I  do  believe  that  the 


36 

project  which  Chicago  has  *o  happily  inaugurated  as  the  incident  of  a  sanitary 
necessity,  which  will  come  to  be  looked  upon  as  a  monumental  foresight. 

I  think  I  have  covered  the  subject-matters  of  your  inquiry.     If  you  wish  the 
documents  which  I  have  especially  referred  to,  I  will  loan  them  to  you,  as  I  do 
not  know  where  duplicates  are  to  l>e  had. 
Yours,  very  respectfully, 

LYMAN  E.  COOLEY. 
General  O.  II.  ERNST, 

Cli<i  in/Kin  of  American  Section 

International  Watcncat/s  Commission,  Washington,  D.  C. 


APPENDIX     C. 

SUM  in  a  r  i/  -of  net  receipts  and  expenditures,  sanitary  district  of  Chicago,  from 
orfHinization  to  December  31,  1905. 

RECEIPTS. 

Taxes  collected  for  general  purposes $30,712,708.65 

Taxes  collected  for  water-power  development.  _       2,014,730.57 

-  $32,  727,  439.  22 
Bond  account  (bonds  outstanding)  : 

First  issue 700,000.00 

Second  issue 1,200,000.00 

Third  issue 1,350,000.00 

Fourth  issue 1,800,000.00 

Fifth  issue 400,000.00 

Sixth  issue 440,000.00 

Seventh  issue 200,  000.  00 

Eighth  issue 190,000.00 

Ninth  issue 700,  000.  00 

Tenth  issue 750,  000.  00 

Eleventh  issue 1,  875,  000.  00 

Twelfth    issue 1,600,000.00 

Thirteenth  issue 1,  275,  000.  00 

Fourteenth  issue 1,  350,  000.  00 

Fifteenth  issue 1,350,000.00 

Sixteenth  issue 2,  000,  000.  00 

17, 180,  000.  00 

Interest  on  bank  balances 362,  785.  73 

Tax  levy,  1896  (warrants  outstanding) 5,212.91 

Dock  and  land  improvement  and  rental  account  (rent  of  land)__  40, 123.  78 

American  Crushed  Stone  Company 1,  000.  00 

Western  Stone  Company 3,278.00 


Total  receipts 50,  319, 839.  64 


EXPENDITURES. 

Right  of  way..  r $6,983,944.14 

River  diversion  construction $1,000,186.38 

Bridge  construction,  river  diversion r_  142,486.20 

Main  channel  construction 18,547,408.95 

Bridge  construction,  main  channel 1,  978,  536.  38 

Controlling  works,  Lockport 331,253.65 

Bridge  construction,  controlling  works 7,873.35 

Joliet  project 1,309,063.46 

Bridge  construction,  Joliet  project 271,  351. 16 

Chicago  River,  dredging,  docking,  etc 2,  027,  221.  78 

Bridge  construction,  Chicago  River 2,498,383.03 

Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal  improvement  at 

Bridgeport 77,016.08 

Thirty-ninth  street  pumping  station 211,604.85 

Improvement  of  Kampsville  and  La  Grange 

dams 16,  920.  27 

Raising  roadway  of  Brandon's  bridge 5,  882.  68 

•  28,  425, 188.  22 


37 

Water-power    development $1,  346,  085.  92 

Bridge  construction,  water-power  development--  112,  362.  44 

•    $1,  458,  448.  36 

Capitalization  and  maintenance  of  bridges 403,354.60 

Maintenance  of  highway  bridges 12,613.89 

Maintenance  account 164,775.95 

580,  744.  44 

Interest  on  bonds 6,821,647.58 

Interest  on  tax  warrants '_ 468,453.69 

—       7,  290,  101.  27 
Taxes  on  land : 

Cook  County 3,248.19 

Dupage  County 1,209.07 

Will  County 27,310.28 

31,  767.  54 

Engineering  department 2,  064,  007.  21 

Engineering  department,   water-power   develop- 
ment   ^ 97,  778.  20 

Clerical    department 1 173,361.87 

Law  department 1,  031, 154. 12 

Treasury    department 41,832.39 

Police   department 400,160.69 

General    account 867,944.19 

— •      4,  685,  238.  67 

City  of  Chicago 14,079.20 

Land  damages 76,  331.  84 

Marine  damages 9,  647.  32 

Personal-injuries    account 4,087.  50 

Bridgeport  pumping  works 90,388.80 

Special  commission,  Chicago  Drainage  Canal 33,  075.  97 

Telephone    line 12,292. 13 

Telephone  line 'repair  account 104.00 

Weir,  McKechney  &  Co ' 22, 118. 14 

E.  D.  Smith  &  Co__  2,  400.  00 

Total  expenditures •_ 49,  719,  957.  54 

Emergency  funds  in  hands  of  department  offi- 
cials           $10,  400.  00 

Due  from  F.  M.  Blount,  treasurer   (deposit  in 

National  Bank  of  Illinois) 22,043.48 

Due  from  John  J.  Hanberg,  county  collector 45,727.38 

Due  from  collector,  town  of  Niles____ 1,660.32 

Balance  in  hands  of  C.  L.   Hutchinson,   treas- 
urer, December  31,  1905 520,050.92 

599,  882. 10 


50,  319,  839.  64 


4554.] 


APPENDIX  D. 
[Permit  of  July  3,  1896.] 


IMPROVEMENT   OF   CHICAGO   RIVER. 


JULY  3,  1896. 

SIR  :  I  have  the  honor  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  your  letter  of  16th  ultimo, 
requesting  permission  to  make  certain  changes  in  the  capacity  of  the  channel 
of  the  Chicago  River  for  drainage  purposes  at  points  indicated  on  the  map  ac- 
companying the  application,  and  in  reply  beg  to  say  that  upon  investigation  it  is 
found  that  the  permission  requested  can  be  granted  upon  the  following  con- 
ditions : 

1.  That  while  the  general  plan  is  approved,  the  sanitary  district  of  Chicago 
must  furnish  plans  in  triplicate  on  an  enlarged  scale  showing  each  proposed  new 
bridge,  each  by-pass,  and  each  new  dock  or  wharf  proposed  to  be  built,  in  order 
that  the  Secretary  of  War  may  act  intelligently  in  each  case. 


38 

2.  That  this  authority  shall  not  be  interpreted  as  approval  of  the  plans  of  the 
sanitary  district  of  Chicago  to  introduce  a  current  into  Chicago  River.     This 
latter  proposition  must  hereafter  be  submited  for  consideration. 

3.  That  it  will  not  cover  obstructions  to  navigation  by  reason  of  this  work 
while  in  progress  or  when  completed. 

4.  That  the  United  States  shall  not  be  put  to  expense  by  reason  of  this  work. 

5.  That   this   authority   will   expire   by   limitation   in   two  years   from   date 
unless  extended. 

Very  respectfully. 

JOSEPH  B.  DOE. 
Acting  Secretary  of  War. 
B.  A.  ECKHART,  ESQ., 

the  Sanitary  District  of  Chicago,  RiaUo  Building,  ChicaffO,  III.: 


[Permit  of  May  8,  1899.] 

Whereas  by  section  10  of  an  act  of  Congress  approved  March  3,  1899,  entitled 
"An  act  making  appropriations  for  the  construction,  repair,  and  preservation  of 
certain  public  works  on  rivers  and  harbors,  and  for  other  purposes,"  it  is  pro- 
vided that  it  shall  not  be  lawful  to  alter  or  modify  the  course,  location,  condition, 
or  capacity  of  the  channel  of  any  navigable  water  of  the  United  States  unless 
the  work  has  been  recommended  by  the  Chief  of  Engineers  and  authorized  by 
the  Secretary  of  War  prior  to  beginning  the  same; 

And  whereas  the  sanitary  district  of  Chicago,  a  municipal  corporation  or- 
ganized under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  has  constructed  an  artificial 
channel  from  Robey  street,  Chicago,  to  Lockport,  and  has  heretofore  been 
granted  permission  by  the  Secretary  of  War  to  make  certain  improvements  in 
the  Chicago  River  for  the  purpose  of  correcting  and  regulating  the  cross  sec- 
tion of  the  river  so  as  to  secure  a  flowage  capacity  of  300,000  cubic  feet  per 
minute  with  a  velocity  of  1|  miles  an  hour,  it  being  intended  to  connect  the 
said  artificial  channel  with  the  west  fork  of  the  South  Branch  of  Chicago  River 
at  Robey  street  in  the  said  city  of  Chicago ; 

And  whereas  the  said  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  has  now  applied  to  the 
Secretary  of  WTar  for  permission  to  divert  the  waters  of  the  said  Chicago  River 
and  cause  them  to  flow  into  the  said  artificial  channel  at  Robey  street,  as 
aforesaid ; 

And  whereas  the  said  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  represents  that  such  mov- 
able dams  and  sluice  -gates  as  are  necessary  to  at  all  times  secure  absolute 
and  complete  control  of  the  volume  and  velocity  of  flow  through  the  Chicago 
River  have  been  constructed ; 

Now,  therefore,  the  Chief  of  Engineers  having  consented  thereto,  this  is  to 
certify  that  the  Secretary  of  War  hereby  gives  permission  to  the  said  sanitary 
district  of  Chicago  to  open  the  channel  constructed  and  cause  the  waters  of 
Chicago  River  to  flow  into  the  same,  subject  to  the  following  conditions : 

1.  That  it  be  distinctly  understood  that  it  is  the  intention  of  the  Secretary  of 
War  to  submit  the  questions  connected  with  the  work  of  the  sanitary  district  of 
Chicago  to  Congress  for  consideration  and  final  action,  and  that  this  permit 
shall  be  subject  to  such  action  as  may  be  taken  by  Congress. 

2.  That  if,  at  any  time,  it  become  apparent  that  the  current  created  by  such 
drainage  works  in  the  South  and  Main  branches  of  Chicago  River  be  unrea- 
sonably obstructive  to  navigation  or  injurious  to  property,  the  Secretary  of  War 
reserves  the  right  to  close  said  discharge  through  said  channel  or  to  modify  it 
to  such  extent  as  may  be  demanded  by  navigation  and  property  interests  along 
said  Chicago  River  and  its  South  Branch. 

3.  That  the  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  must  assume  all  responsibility  for 
damages  to  property  and  navigation  interests  by  reason  of  the  introduction 
of  a  current  in  Chicago  River. 

Witness  my  hand  this  8th  day  of  May,  1899. 

[SEAL.]  R.  A.  ALGER, 

Secretary  of  War. 
JOHN  M.  WILSON, 

Brigadier-General,  Chief  of  Engineers,  U.  S.  Army. 


39 

[Permit  of  April  9,  1901.] 

Whereas,  under  date  of  May  8,  1899,  the  Secretary  of  War  granted  permission 
unto  the  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  to  open  the  artificial  channel  from  Robey 
street,  Chicago,  to  Lockport,  and  cause  the  waters  of  Chicago  River  to  flow 
into  the  same,  upon  the  following  conditions,  inter  alia  : 

"  2.  That  if,  at  any  time,  it  become  apparent  that  the  current  created  by 
such  drainage  works  in  the  South  and  Main  branches  of  Chicago  River  be 
unreasonably  obstructive  to  navigation  or  injurious  to  property,  the  Secretary 
of  War  reserves  the  right  to  close  said  discharge  through  said  channel  or  to 
modify  it  to  such  extent  as  may  be  demanded  by  navigation  and  property 
interests  along  said  Chicago  River  and  its  South  Branch ;  " 

And  whereas  it  is  alleged  by  various  commercial  and  navigation  interests 
that  the  present  discharge  from  the  river  into  the  drainage  canal  sometimes 
exceeds  300,000  cubic  feet  per  minute,  causing  a  velocity  of  nearly  3  miles 
per  hour,  which  greatly  endangers  navigation  in  the  present  condition  of 
the  river ; 

Now  therefore,  this  is  to  certify  that  the  Secretary  of  War,  upon  the  recom- 
mendation of  the  Chief  of  Engineers,  hereby  directs  said  sanitary  district  to 
regulate  the  discharge  from  the  river  into  the  drainage  canal  so  that  the  maxi- 
mum flow  through  the  Chicago  River  and  its  South  Branch  shall  not  exceed 
200,000  cubic  feet  per  minute. 

Witness  my  hand  this  9th  day  of  April.  1901. 

[SEAL.]  ELIHU  ROOT, 

Secretary  of  War. 


[Permit  of  July  23,  1901.] 

THE  SANITARY  DISTRICT  OF  CHICAGO, 

SECURITY  BUILDING. 

Chicago,  July  15,  1901. 

SIR:  1  have  the  honor  to  request,  on  behalf  of  the  sanitary  district  of  Chi- 
cago, that  your  order  of  April  9,  1901,  restricting  the  flow  of  water  through  the 
Chicago  River  to  200,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  minute,  may  be  so  amended  as 
to  permit  the  controlling  works  at  Lockport,  the  outlet  of  the  main  drainage 
channel,  to  be  so  regulated  as  to  permit  at  that  point  a  flow  of  300,000  cubic 
feet  of  water  per  minute  between  the  hours  of  4  p.  m.  and  12  o'clock  midnight. 

The  board  of  trustees  of  the  sanitary  district  have  rigidly  observed  the  re- 
strictions of  your  order  of  April  9,  1901,  but  the  result  has  been  that  the  water 
in  the  main  drainage  channel  has  become  greatly  polluted  and  very  offensive 
both  to  sight  and  smell  and  is  working  such  hardship  upon  the  valley  communi- 
ties as  to  evoke  frequent  protests  from  various  cities  and  municipalities  along 
the  Des  Plaines  and  Illinois  valleys. 

By  such  a  modification  of  your  restricting  order  as  is  herein  petitioned,  it 
would  be  possible  for  the  sanitary  district  to  secure  much  better  drainage  of 
the  city  of  Chicago  and  the  purification  of  the  waters  of  the  Chicago  River 
without  any  hardship  or  inconvenience  whatever  to  the  interests  of  naviga- 
tion, as  the  opening  of  the  controlling  works  to  a  flow  of  300,000  cubic  feet  of 
water  per  minute  would  produce  no  appreciable  affect  upon  the  current  of  the 
Chicago  River  until  three  hours  thereafter  and  would  not  produce  the  full 
effect  until  about  eight  hours  after  the  opening  of  the  gates.  Therefore,  by 
again  diminishing  the  flow  at  midnight  to  the  requirements  of  your  order,  or 
to  200,000  cubic  feet  of  water  per  minute,  the  normal  condition  in  the  Chicago 
River  would  be  restored  before  (5  a.  in.  on  the  following  day  and  thus  no  hard- 
ship or  inconvenience  occasioned  to  the  navigation  interests  of  the  Chicago 
River. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  very  respectfully,  yours. 

ALEX.  J.  JONES.  I'r 

To  the  Hon.  ELIHU  ROOT, 

Sccrctari/  of  War,  Washington,  7>.  ('. 


40 

indorsement.] 

OFFICE*" CHIEF  OF  ENGINEERS,  U.  S.  ARMY. 

July  22,  1901. 

Respectfully  returned  to  the  Secretary  of  War. 

By  an  instrument  dated  April  9,  1901,  the  Secretary  of  War  directed  the 
sanitary  district  of  Chicago  to  regulate  the  discharge  from  the  Chicago  River 
into  the  drainage  canal  so  that  the  maximum  flow  through  the  Chicago  River 
and  its  South  Branch  shall  not  exceed  200,000  feet  per  minute. 

The  sanitary  district  now  asks  that  this  order  be  so  amended  as  to  permit  an 
increase  of  the  flow  into  the  canal  to  300,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  between 
4  p.  in.  and  12  midnight,  daily. 

It  is  the  opinion  of  Major  Willard,  expressed  in  the  accompanying  letter  of 
the  10th  instant,  that  the  request  should  be  granted  subject  to  revocation  by  the 
Secretary  of  War  in  case  the  increase  be  found  dangerous  to  navigation. 

I  concur  in  this  opinion  and  recommend  that  the  order  of  April  9,  1901,  be 
modified  accordingly. 

G.  L.  GILLESPIE, 
Brigadier-General,  ('Iticf  of  Engineers,  U.  S.  Anni/. 

[Third  indorsement.] 

WAR    DEPARTMENT, 

JnJi/  2.?.  1901. 
Approved  as  recommended  by  the  Chief  of  Engineers. 

E.  ROOT, 
Secretary  of  War. 

[Permit  of  December  5,  1001.] 

Whereas  under  date  of  May  8,  1899,  the  Secretary  of  War  granted  permis- 
sion unto  the  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  to  open  the  artificial  channel  from 
Robey  street,  Chicago,  to  Lockport,  and  cause  the  waters  of  Chicago  River 
to  flow  into  the  same,  upon  the  following  condition,  inter  alia  : 

"  2.  That  if  at  any  time  it  becomes  apparent  that  the  current  created  by 
such  drainage  work  in  the  South  and  Main  branches  of  Chicago  River  be  un- 
reasonably obstructive  to  navigation  or  injurious  to  property,  the  Secretary 
of  War  reserves  the  right  to  close  said  discharge  through  said  channel  or  to 
modify  it  to  such  extent  as  may  be  demanded  by  navigation  and  property 
interests  along  said  Chicago  River  and  its  South  Branch." 

And  whereas  the  Secretary  of  War  subsequently  directed  said  sanitary 
district  of  Chicago  to  regulate  the  discharge  of  water  into  the  Chicago  Drain- 
age Canal  so  that  the  maximum  flow  through  the  Chicago  River  shall  not 
exceed  200,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  from  midnight  to  4  p.  in.,  nor  300,000 
cubic  feet  per  minute  from  4  p.  m.  to  midnight. 

And  whereas  said  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  has  applied  to  the  Secretary 
of  War  for  permission  to  increase  the  flow  between  midnight  and  4  p.  in.  daily 
to  250,000  cubic  feet  per  minute,  and  the  Chief  of  Enginers  has  recommended 
that  the  increase  applied  for  be  granted,  but  that  the  rate  of  flow  from  4  p.  m. 
to  midnight  be  reduced  to  250,000  cubic  feet  per  minute,  so  that  the  flow  through 
the  Chicago  River  shall  not  exceed  250,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  throughout  the 
twenty-four  hours  of  the  day : 

Now.  therefore,  this  is  to  certify  that,  in  accordance  with  the  recommendation 
of  the  Chief  of  Engineers,  the  Secretary  of  War  hereby  gives  unto  said  sani- 
tary district  of  Chicago  permission  to  regulate  said  discharge  so  that  the  maxi- 
mum flow  through  the  Chicago  River  shall  not  exceed  250,000  cubic  feet  per 
minute  throughout  the  twenty-four  hours  of  the  day,  upon  the  following  con- 
ditions : 

1.  That  this  permission  shall  be  in   lieu  of  the  present  authorized  rates  of 
flow  ;is  st.-itcd  above. 

2.  That  the  permission  herein  given  shall  be  subject  to  such  modification  as 
in  the  opinion  of  the  Secretary  of  War  the  public  interests  may  from  time  to 
time  require. 

3.  That  said  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  shall  be  responsible  for  all  damages 
inflicted  upon   navigation   interests   by   reason    of   the   increase    in    flow   herein 
authorized. 

Witness  my  hand  this  5th  day  of  December,  1901. 

WM.  GARY  SANGER, 

Rceretarii  of  IT'//'. 


41 

[Permit  of  January  17,  1903.] 

Whereas,  under  date  of  December  5,  1901,  by  an  instrument  supplementary 
to  the  original  permission  granted  by  the  Secretary  of  War  May  8,  1899,  to 
the  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  to  open  the  artificial  channel  from  Robey  street, 
Chicago,  to  Lockport,  and  cause  the  waters  of  Chicago  River  to  flow  into  the 
same,  the  Secretary  of  War,  pursuant  to  authority  reserved  in  said  permission 
of  May  8,  1899,  gave  permission  to  the  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  to  regulate 
said  discharge  so  that  the  maximum  flow  through  the  Chicago  River  shall  not 
exceed  250,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  throughout  the  twenty-four  hours  of  the 
day,  upon  the  following  condition,  inter  alia  : 

"  That  the  permission  herein  given  shall  be  subject  to  such  modification  as 
in  the  opinion  of  the  Secretary  of  War  the  public  interests  may  from  time  to 
time  require." 

And  whereas  the  said  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  has  applied  for  permission 
to  increase  the  flow  through  the  Chicago  River  from  250,000  cubic  feet  per 
minute  to  350,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  during  the  closed  season  of  navigation, 
in  order  to  carry  off  the  accumulations  of  sewage  deposit  which  line  the  shores 
along  said  city : 

Now,  therefore,  this  is  to  certify  that,  in  accordance  with  the  recommendation 
of  the  Chief  of  Engineers,  the  Secretary  of  War  hereby  gives  unto  said  sanitary 
district  of  Chicago  permission  to  increase  the  flow  through  the  Chicago  River 
from  250,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  to  350,000  cubic  feet  per  minute  until  the 
31st  day  of  March,  1903,  after  which  date  it  shall  be  reduced  to  250,000  cubic 
feet  per  minute,  as  now  authorized,  upon  the  following  conditions : 

1.  That  the  permission  herein  given  shall  be  subject  to  such  modifications  as 
in  the  opinion  of  the  Secretary  of  War  the  public  interests  may  from  time  to 
time  require. 

2.  That  said  sanitary  district  of  Chicago  shall  be  responsible  for  all  damages 
inflicted  upon  navigation  interests  by  reason  of  the  increase  in  flow  herein 
authorized. 

Witness  my  hand  this  17th  day  of  January,  1903. 

[SEAL.]  WM.  GARY  SANGEB, 

Assistant  Secretary  of  War. 


APPENDIX  E. 

Resolved  by  the  Senate,  the  House  of  Representatives  concurring  herein: 

1.  That  it  is  the  policy  of  the  State  of  Illinois  to  procure  the  construction  of  a 
waterway  of  the  greatest  practicable  depth  and  usefulness  for  navigation  from 
Lake  Michigan  via  Des  Plaines  and  Illinois  rivers  to  the  Mississippi  River,  and 
to    encourage    the    construction    of    feeders    thereto    of    like    proportions    and 
usefulness. 

2.  That  the  United  States  is  hereby  requested  to  stop  work  upon  the  locks  and 
dams  at  Lagrange  and  at  Kampsville,  and  to  apply  all  funds  available  and  future 
appropriations  to  the  improvement  of  the  channel  from  Lasalle  to  the  mouth,  with 
a  view  to  such  a  depth  as  will  be  of  present  utility,  and  in  such  manner  as  to 
develop  progressively  all  the  depth  practicable  by  the  aid  of  a  large  water 
supply  from  Lake  Michigan  at  Chicago. 

3.  That  the  United  States  is  requested  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  channel 
not  less  than  160  feet  wide  and  22  feet  deep,  with  such  a  grade  as  to  give  a 
velocity  of  3  miles  per  hour  from  Lake  Michigan,  at  Chicago,  to  Lake  Joliet, 
a  pool  of  the  Des  Plaines  River  immediately  below  Joliet,  and  to  project  a  chan- 
nel of  similar  capacity  and  not  less  than  14  feet  deep  from  Lake  Joliet  to  La- 
salle, all  to  be  designed  in  such  manner  as  to  permit  future  development  to  a 
greater  capacity. 

Adopted  by  the  Senate  May  27,  1889. 

Concurred  in  by  the  House  of  Representatives  May  27,  1889. 


42 

APPENDIX  F. 

KKI'OKT     TO     THE     I  NTKKNA  HON  AI.     WATERWAYS     COMMISSION     ON      THE     DISPOSAL     OF 

SEWAGE  OK  CHU  A<;O  A\D  VICINITY.  i:v  r.rnoi.PH  TIERING  AND  GEORGE  w.  FULLER, 

DKCK.MHKH    IS.    I'.MMi. 

NEW  YORK  CITY,  December  IS,  1906. 
To  the  International  in/fcnn///*  Coininixxioii: 

SIRS  :  In  response  to  your  recent  request  we  beg  to  report  herewith  upon  sev- 
eral propositions  connected  with  the  question  of  extending  the  method  of  dis- 
posing of  the  sewage  of  Chicago  and  vicinity  by  means  of  dilution  with  Lake 
Michigan  water.  Your  instructions  may  be  briefly  summarized  as  follows : 

1.  Examination  into  the  sanitary  situation  at  Chicago  so  far  as  it  is  affected 
by  sewage  disposal. 

2.  Latest   conclusions   of   sanitary   engineers   as   to   the   amount   of  dilution 
which  is  required  to  make  sewage  inoffensive. 

3!  Is  the  extension  of  the  dilution  method  to  the  outlying  territory  the  only 
way  to  preserve  the  lives  and  health  of  the  people  of  Chicago? 

4.  For  the  Calumet  area,   are  there  not  other  methods  of  sewage  disposal 
which  may  be  applied  at  a  cost  not  exceeding  much,  if  at  all,  the  cost  of  the 
method  of  dilution  proposed,  and  which  will  be  equally  effective  in  preventing 
the  pollution  of  the  lake  waters? 

5.  Description  of  the  various  systems  of  sewage  disposal  which  are  available 
for  the  Calumet  area,  with  a  statement  of  their  relative  efficiencies. 

6.  Statement  of  the  approximate  relative  costs  of  the  last  mentioned  so  far 
as  they  can  be  given  without  the  preparation  of  detailed  plans. 

You  further  state  clearly  in  your  letter  of  instructions  that  you  do  not 
desire  an  investigation  into  the  effect  of  the  present  method  upon  the  naviga- 
tion interests  of  the  Great  Lakes,  as  that  has  already  been  officially  considered 
by  yourselves.  Further,  you  state  that  you  accept  as  a  fixed  fact  the  Chicago 
Drainage  Canal  as  designed  and  built,  with  its  attendant  diversion  of  10,000 
cubic  feet  per  second  of  lake  water  through  the  Chicago  River  and  its  branches. 

In  accordance  with  further  instructions  we  have  not  given  consideration  to 
questions  of  a  legal  or  legislative  nature.  We  have  viewed  this  problem  solely 
as  an  engineering  proposition  without  regard  to  inter-State  questions  and  other 
features  associated  with  the  fact  that  a  portion  of  the  future  metropolitan  area 
of  Chicago  will  obviously  lie  within  the  State  of  Indiana.  It  is  further  under- 
stood that  under  the  existing  circumstances  we  are  to  give  you  our  opinion 
without  entering  into  such  details  as  would  be  required  by  additional  surveys 
or  other  field  work  beyond  a  personal  inspection  of  the  areas. 

Sl.\VA(iK    DISPCS  VI.    AT    (   H  1C  AGO. 

DraiiHif/c  t'liiml. — Nearly  all  of  the  sewage  from  the  population  of  Chicago  now 
connected  with  sewers  is  diluted  with  Lake  Michigan  water,  which,  since  Janu- 
ary IT.  1900.  has  been  allowed  to  flow  through  the  new  drainage  canal  and  thus 
reach  the  valley  of  the  Illinois  River.  This  method  of  disposal  is  the  outcome  of 
various  investigations,  particularly  of  a  commission  on  the  drainage  and  water 
supply  of  Chicago  in  1XS»J-X7.  It  was  formally  adopted  in  IMS'.)  by  State  legisla- 
tion, creating  the  "  Sanitary  District  of  Chicago."  specifically  providing  that  the 
volume  of  lake  water  for  purposes  of  dilution  shall  bo  :'»A  cubic  feet  per  sec- 
ond for  each  l.oro  of  population  connected  with  the  sewers,  or  20.000  cubic  feet 
per  minute  for  each  100.000  population. 

Hurlij  iitctJioflx. — In  early  days  part  of  the  sewage  of  Chi«-ago  flowe'l  directly 
into  the  lake  and  part  into  the  Chicago  River  and  its  branches.  From  the  latter 
a  portion  of  the  water  and  sewage,  beginning  over  thirty-five  years  ago,  has 
been  pumped  at  Bridgeport  into  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal,  as  is  true  to 
some  extent  to-day.  It  is  understood  that  the  old  canal  is  to  be  discontinued 
by  legislative  action  as  soon  as  equivalent  transportation  and  power  facilities 
can  be  arranged  for  by  means  of  the  new  canal. 

Ami  of  xniiitnry  district. — In  190H  an  act  of  legislature  was  passed  extend- 
ing the  area  of  the  sanitary  district  from  185  to  358.1  square  miles,  and  includ- 
ing the  "  north  shore  addition "  of  78.6  square  miles,  and  the  "  Calumet 
addition"  of  94.5  square  miles.  The  area  of  the  city  o£  Chicago  is  190.638 
square  miles,  leaving  167.462  square  miles  as  the  area  of  the  present  sanitary 
district  outside  of  the  city  limits. 


43 

There  are  several  features  to  be  noted  in  connection  with  the  method  of 
sewage  disposal  of  the  city  of  Chicago  as  adopted  in  1889.  It  had  been  found 
to  be  the  cheapest  method  then  available  for  disposing  of  the  sewage  so  that  it 
would  not  pollute  the  public  water  supply,  which  was  then  and  is  now  derived 
from  Lake  Michigan  through  a  series  of  intake  cribs  located  at  various  dis- 
tances from  shore. 

Intercepting  scicers. — To  prevent  such  pollution  it  was  of  course  necessary 
first  to  divert  all  of  the  sewage  into  the  Chicago  River.  A  pure-water  com- 
mission was  appointed  by  the  mayor  in  1897  to  consider  the  question  of  inter- 
cepting sewers  for  that  purpose.  It  recommended  among  others  a  large 
intercepting  sesver  to  collect  the  sewage  from  the  area  along  the  lake  front 
between  Seventy-third  and  Thirty-first  streets,  and  about  a  year  ago  a  20-foot 
conduit  was  completed  on  Thirty-ninth  street,  through  which  the  diluted  sewage 
Irom  this  area  now  passes  to  the  south  fork  of  the  south  branch  of  the  Chicago 
River.  At  present  there  is  a  gravity  flow  of  lake  water  ordinarily  of  about 
40,000  cubic  feet  per  minute.  Pumps  are  now  in  process  of  erection  by  which 
ultimately  there  will  be  pumped  through  this  conduit  about  120,000  cubic  feet 
of  lake  water  per  minute,  or  2,000  cubic  feet  per  second. 

On  Twenty-second  street  there  was  formerly  a  main  sewer  draining  the  area 
bordering  on  the  lake  front  between  Thirty-first  and  Sixteenth  streets,  and  dis- 
charging into  the  lake.  In  1898  the  flow  in  this  sewer  was  reversed  so  that  its 
contents  now  discharge  into  the  river. 

On  Twelfth  street  in  1898  the  flow  in  the  main  sewer  was  also  reversed. 

In  the  heart  of  the  city,  or  business  section,  the  sewers  have  always  dis- 
charged into  the  river  and  not  into  the  lake.  The  same  is  true  of  a  considerable 
area  lying  north  of  the  Chicago  River  and  along  the  lake  shore.  To  facilitate 
this  discharge  a  conduit  was  put  in  service  in  1880  at  Fullerton  avenue,  through 
which  there  has  been  pumped  about  12,000  cubic  feet  of  lake  water  per  minute 
into  the  North  Branch  of  the  Chicago  River. 

At  the  present  time  there  is  no  sewage  entering  the  lake  between  Surf 
street  (just  north  of  Lincoln  Park)  on  the  north  side  and  Seventy-third  street 
on  the  south  side  of  Chicago. 

Plans  are  under  way  for  the  construction  of  the  necessary  works  to  collect 
the  sewage  along  the  lake  front  between  Seventy-third  and  Eighty-seventh 
streets  and  to  pump  it  into  sewers  west  of  Halsted  street,  which  lead  to  the 
Chicago  River.  There  is  very  little  or  no  sewage  from  this  area  now  reaching 
the  lake,  as  the  district  is  yet  practically  unsewered. 

On  the  north  side  there  is  an  area  between  Surf  street  and  the  northern  city 
limits  and  between  the  lake  shore  and  the  ridge  between  the  lake  and  the  river, 
which  now  discharges  sewage  into  the  lake,  but  which  will  be  diverted  next 
summer.  This  se\vage  is  to  be  collected  by  interceptors  conducting  it  to  Law- 
rence avenue,  where  will  be  located  a  pumping  station  and  a  conduit  for  pump- 
ing the  sewage  and  about  35,000  cubic  feet  of  lake  water  per  minute  into  the 
North  Branch  of  the  Chicago  River. 

Farther  north,  at  Wilmette.  a  conduit  is  proposed  to  be  built  with  a  pumping 
station  near  the  Northern  Railroad  bridge  in  Evanston,  where  about  60,000 
cubic  feet  of  lake  water  per  minute  will  be  diverted  into  the  North  Branch  of 
the  Chicago  River. 

Summary  of  flow  to  canal.. — The  projected  flow  of  the  lake  water  to  the 
canal  through  the  Chicago  River  and  its  branches  to  the  drainage  canal  may 
therefore  be  divided  and  summarized  as  follows : 


Cubic  feet, 
per  minute. 

Cubic  feet 
per  second. 

Main  stream  Chicago  River                                

373,000 

6,217 

Thirty-ninth  street  conduit                                                                 

120,  000 

2,000 

Fullerton  avenue  conduit                          

12,000 

200 

Lawrence  avenue  conduit                                                

35,000 

583 

60,  000 

1,000 

Total                                                                                             

600,000 

10,000 

The  volume  for  the  main  stream  of  the  Chicago  River  as  above  stated, is 
obtained  by  deducting  the  remaining  quantities  from  the  total. 


44 

REQl'IKE.MKXTS    FOR    THE    REVERSAL    OF    FLOW    IX    THE    CHICAGO    RIVER.- 

i 

The  satisfactory  disposal  of  the  sewage  of  Chicago  by  means  of  the  new 
drainage  canal  requires  that,  at  and  after  heavy  rainfalls,  the  storm  water 
and  sewage  from  the  watershed  of  the  Chicago  River  shall  hot  flow  into  Lake 
Michigan,  and  therefore  it  is  necessary  to  secure  a  practical  reversal  of  the 
original  flow  in  the  Chicago  River. 

The  drainage  area  of  the  Chicago  River  is  about  270  square  miles.  Flood 
tiows  in  the  river  have  reached  a  maximum  of  about  10,000  cubic  feet  per 
second,  or  000,000  cubic  feet  per  minute,  and  this  fact  was  also  an  important 
element  in  fixing  the  minimum  size  of  the  present  drainage  canal. 

As  to  the  efficiency  of  arrangements  for  the  reversal  of  flow,  our  inquiries 
lead  us  to  believe  that  this  has  been  accomplished  in  a  satisfactory  way.  Up 
to  the  present  time,  and  owing  to  the  insufficient  waterway  of  some  parts  of 
the  Chicago  River,  the  volume  of  Lake  Michigan  water  going  through  the 
river  has  not  approached  the  volume  above  stated.  But  there  have  been  times 
when  a  continuous  flow  of  the  Chicago  River  has  been  toward  Lake  Michigan 
for  perhaps  two  or  three  hours.  This  time  is  necessary  to  properly  regulate 
the  water  level  at  the  controlling  works  near  Lockport 

POPULATION   OF  CHICAGO  NOW    SEWERING  INTO  THE   DRAINAGE  CANAL. 

We  find  that  the  present  population  of  Chicago  is,  in  round  numbers,  2,000,000 
people,  of  which  between  100,000  and  200,000  reside  south  of  Eighty-seventh 
street,  tributary  to  the  Calumet  district,  but  within  the  city  limits.  Of  the  re- 
maining population  about  300,000  reside  in  the  southern  lake  front  district.  This 
area  is  tributary  to  the  Thirty-ninth  street  pumping  station,  which,  since  about 
January  1,  190G,  has  brought  about  the  diversion  of  the  sewage  from  the  lake 
into  the  South  Fork  of  the  south  branch  of  the  Chicago  River. 

There  is  still  an  area  in  the  northwestern  part  of  the  city  north  of  Lincoln 
Park,  spoken  of  as  the  northern  lake  front  district,  which  drains  directly  into 
the  lake.  Its  population  may  be  very  roughly  estimated  at  70,000. 

There  is  a  considerable  area  south  of  Seventy-third  street  and  west  of  Hal- 
sted  street,  and  also  a  portion  of  the  northwestern  part  of  the  city,  which  are  of 
a  semi-suburban  character.  Some  portions  have  been  provided  with  sewers  and 
receive  the  overflow  from  cesspools. 

So  far  as  we  are  able  to  ascertain  from  local  officials  and  without  making  a 
personal  canvass  as  to  details,  it  appears  that  there  are  now,  in  round  numbers, 
about  1,500,000  people  sewering  into  the  drainage  canal.  In  addition  to  the 
sewage  there  enters  it  a  considerable  quantity  of  trade  wastes,  notably  about 
2,000,000  gallons  from  the  stock-yard  district,  and  from  quite  a  number  of  other 
industrial  establishments,  such  as  tanneries,  wool-pulling  establishments,  etc.,  as 
stated  by  the  sanitary  inspector  in  the  last  report  of  the  health  department. 

It  is  our  understanding  that  the  present  sewage  disposal  project  for  Chicago  is 
not  intended  to  provide  for  the  disposal  of  trade  wastes  now  discharged  into 
the  sewers.  While  comparatively  little  has  been  done  as  yet  to  remove  them 
from  the  sewers,  we  have  been  informed  that  it  is  propesed  to  take  up  this 
matter  actively. 

INFLUENCE  OF  SEWAGE  ON  CHICAGO  WATER  SUPPLY. 

The  city  of  Chicago  receives  its  water  supply  from  Lake  Michigan  through 
a  series  of  tunnels  of  various  lengths,  ranging  from  about  1  to  5  miles  from 
shore.  Most  of  them  extend  from  the  shore  about  2  miles.  The  total  pumping 
capacity  for  this  supply  is  stated  to  be  529,000,000  gallons  in  twenty-four  hours. 
In  1905  the  average  daily  pumpage  was  recorded  as  399,000,000  gallons. 

Since  the  removal  of  the  sewage  through  the  drainage  canal  was  systematic- 
ally begun  in  January,  1900,  the  appearance  of  the  water  of  the  Chicago  River 
has  shown  marked  improvement. 

The  effect  of  the  drainage  canal  upon  the  hygienic  quality  of  the  public  water 
supply  may  be  studied  in  connection  with  the  typhoid  fever  death  rates  at 
Chicago,  which  are  recorded  in  the  next  table,  together  with  corresponding 
death  rates  for  a  number  of  other  American  cities.  It  is  not  to  be  assumed 
that  typhoid  fever  is  entirely  due  to  the  pollution  of  the  public  water  supply  at 
Chicago  or  elsewhere,  as  it  is  well  known  that  there  are  other  means  of  trans- 
mitting this  disease.  But  its  relation  to  the  public  water  supply  is  so  intimate 
that  it  gives,  perhaps,  the  best  general  idea  of  the  sanitary  quality  of  the  water, 
and  therefore  it  frequently  has  been  used  as  a  rough  means  of  such  measurement. 


45 


There  are  other  factors  beside  the  drainage  canal  to  be  considered  carefully 
in  connection  with  the  typhoid  fever  statistics  at  Chicago,  and  some  of  which 
should  be  mentioned  here.  Prior  to  1900  there  was  a  substantial  improvement 
in  the  public  water  supply,  partly  due  to  the  extension  of  some  of  the  intake 
cribs  and  tunnels  farther  into  the  lake  and  partly  to  the  reversal  of  the  flow 
of  a  number  of  the  sewers  from  the  lake  into  the  river,  such  as  those  at 
Twelfth  and  Twenty-second  streets,  in  1898.  These  are  important  factors  in 
explaining  the  absence  in  the  late  nineties  of  such  excessive  typhoid  death  rates 
as  were  noted  at  the  beginning  of  that  decade. 

Since  the  opening  of  the  drainage  canal  typhoid  fever  at  Chicago  has  been 
rather  unusually  prevalent  at  times.  This  was  especially  true  in  1902-3,  when, 
it  is  understood,  portions  of  the  supply  became  contaminated  after  leaving  the 
intake  crib.  These  accidental  pollutions  have  since  been  corrected. 

The  report  of  the  city  chemist  of  Chicago,  as  given  in  the  last  annual  report 
of  the  department  of  health,  shows  that  on  an  average  in  1905  the  city  water 
supply  was  considered  by  him  to  be  safe  about  85  per  cent  of  the  time.  * 

While  there  has  been  a  marked  improvement  in  recent  years  in  the  quality 
•of  the  Chicago  water  supply,  due  to  the  progressive  elimination  of  sewage  from 
the  lake,  there  is  still  room  for  more  improvement.  These  improvements  refer 
to  the  pollution  along  the  lake  front  north  of  Lincoln  Park,  which  is  being 
corrected,  and  to  the  "  Calumet  area  "  south  of  Eighty-seventh  street,  which  is 
now  under  consideration. 

Comparison  of  the  annual  number  of  recorded  deaths  from  typhoid  fever  per 
100,000  population  at  Chicago  and  other  American  cities,  1890-1905. 


Year. 

Chi- 
cago. 

Mil- 
wau- 
kee. 

De- 
troit. 

Cleve- 
land. 

Buf- 
falo. 

To- 
ronto. 

Bos- 
ton. 

New 
York. 

Phila- 
del- 
phia. 

Balti- 
more. 

Wash- 
ington 

1890... 
1891  

83 
160 

33 
33 

18 
13 

69 

50 

44 

56 

80 
90 

43 
33 

21 
22 

64 

G4 

57 
34 

89 
86 

1892  
1893  
1894 

103 
42 
31 

31 
37 
26 

64 
29 

27 

59 
52 
29 

38 
37 
62 

40 
40 
20 

25 
26 
23 

14 
20 
17 

40 

40 
32 

42 
47 
49 

72 
72 

72 

1895  
1896 

32 
53 

25 

18 

24 
23 

35 
43 

28 
22 

30 
24 

32 
32 

17 
16 

40 
34 

28 
37 

69 
51 

1897  

29 

11 

15 

23 

19 

18 

33 

16 

33 

37 

42 

1898  .. 

38 

17 

18 

34 

29 

16 

34 

20 

51 

38 

64 

1899 

26 

17 

13 

32 

26 

19 

30 

16 

75 

30 

00 

1900  
1901 

20 
29 

21 
21 

18 

20 

54 
36 

27 

27 

19 
16 

25 

25 

21 

20 

35 
33 

37 

27 

77 
67 

1902  
1903  
1904  

44 
31 

19 

16 
17 
13 

17 

17 
16 

33 
114 

48 

33 
35 

91 

13 
15 

22 

35 
20 
18 

21 
18 
17 

44 
70 

42 
36 
36 

79 
48 
43 

1905 

16 

20 

12 

15 

23 

20 

16 

48 

36 

45 

LATEST    CONCLUSIONS    AS    TO    THE    REQUIRED   DEGREE    OF   DILUTION    FOR    THE    DISPOSAL 
OF    SEWAGE    WITHOUT    NUISANCE. 

The  disposal  of  sewage  by  dilution  depends  on  the  amount  of  oxygen  in  the 
diluting  water  being  sufficient  to  prevent  putrefaction  of  the  organic  matter 
in  the  sewage  as  the  latter  undergoes  bacterial  decomposition.  If  the  oxygen 
is  deficient  bacterial  decomposition  produced  what  is  called  "  putrefaction," 
with  its  various  attendant  bad  odors,  such  as  noted  for  years  in  Chicago  at 
"  Bubbly  Creek."  If  there  is  a  sufficient  amount  of  oxygen  dissolved  in  the 
water  to  combine  with  this  organic  matter,  decomposition  goes  on  without  any 
foul  odors  and  the  organic  matter  is  reduced  to  inert  matter  in  an  inoffensive 
way. 

This  question  is  one  of  balancing  the  amount  of  oxygen  in  a  given  volume  of 
water  with  the  amount  of  decomposing  organic  matter  in  the  sewage,  which 
naturally  must  vary  greatly. 

There  are  many  observations  of  more  or  less  accuracy  available  to  give 
figures  for  this  relation.  The  Massachusetts  State  board  of  health  made  a 
special  inquiry  into  this  subject  for  all  local  rivers  in  1902,  with  conclusions, 
stated  on  page  452  of  their  annual  report  for  that  year,  as  follows : 

"  The  results  of  the  investigations  show  that  where  the  quantity  of  water 
available  for  the  dilution  of  the  sewage  in  a  stream  exceeds  about  6  cubic  feet 
per  second  per  1,000  persons  discharging  sewage,  objectionable  conditions  are 


46 

unlikely  to  result  from  the  gross  pollution  of  all  the  water  of  a  stream  in  dry 
weather.  Under  favorable  circnmstarlres,  such  as  in  cases  where  the  sewage  is 
discharged  at  many  outlets  into  a  large  body  of  water,  objectionable  conditions 
may  not  result  where  the  dilution  is  somewhat  less  than  0  cubic  feet  per  second 
per  .1.000  persons;  but  objectionable  conditions  have  resulted  in  all  of  the 
cases  thus  far  examined  where  the  flow  has  been  less  than  3.5  cubic  feet  per 
second  per  1,000  persons  discharging  sewage  into  the  stream." 

These  conclusions  apply  for  the  most  part  to  comparatively  small  streams' 
into  which  much  manufacturing  waste  is  discharged  and  upon  which  mill 
ponds  are  situated. 

There  are  times  when  the  flow  of  water  in  the  drainage  canal  appears  to  have 
been  ii.sufiieient  to  eliminate  objectionable  odors  entirely.  How  far  this  may  be 
explained  by  confusion  on  the  part  of  the  observers  of  the  putrefactive  odors 
emanating  from  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal  with  those  of  the  new  canal, 
and  how  far  it  may  be  due  to  temporary  reductions  in  the  rate  of  flow  in  the 
new  canal  and  river  to  facilitate  construction  work,  and  also  to  the  effect  of 
rainfalls  and  to  old  deposits  in  the  South  Fork,  we  are  unable  to  say. 

The  new  canal  appears  to  serve  at  present  about  one-half  the  population  for 
which  it  was  designed,  and  through  it  flows  a  volume  of  lake  water  which  is 
variable,  but  which  averages  not  far  from  one-half  of  the  ultimate  quantity. 

It  is  our  judgment  that  for  large  canals  with  the  trade  wastes  eliminated  a 
dilution  of  3£  cubic  feet  per  second  for  each  1,000  population  connected  with 
the  sewers  also  receiving  storm  water  is  as  low  a  figure  as  it  is  now  possible 
to  state.  Local  conditions,  especially  temperature,  which  affects  bacterial 
activities  and  the  coefficient  of  absorption  of  oxygen  by  water,  and  still  other 
matters,  bear  upon  this  question,  the  detailed  discussion  of  which  is  not  now 
necessary.  We  feel  certain  that  a  dilution  of  2£  cubic  feet  per  second  would 
cause  offense  at  times,  and  probably  also  a  dilution  of  3  cubic  feet  per  second. 

FUTURE  POPULATION    ON    AX    AREA    TRIBUTARY    TO   THE    CHICAGO   RIVER   AND   DRAINAGE 
CANAL    WITH    REFERENCE    TO    SEWAGE    DISPOSAL. 

On  the  basis  of  the  diversion  of  10,000  cubic  feet  per  second  of  Lake  Michigan 
water,  on  the  present  assumption  of  3*  feet  per  second  as  being  the  volume  to 
be  provided  for  each  1,000- population  connected  with  the  sewers,  and  on  the 
assumption  of  eliminating  objectionable  trade  wastes,  the  present  method 
of  disposal  may  serve  until  the  population  on  the  drainage  area  of  the  Chicago 
River  reaches  3,000,000  people. 

On  the  further  assumption  that  through  the  Chicago  River  and  various  con- 
duits connected  with  its  branches  there  will  be  a  flow  equal  to  14,000  cubic 
feet  per  second,  which  is  the  capacity  of  the  rock  section  of  the  drainage  canal, 
the  maximum  population  which  might  be  taken  care  of  in  this  way  is  about 
4,200,000  people. 

With  a  large  portion  of  the  270  square  miles  draining  into  the  Chicago 
River,  but  not  yet  built  up,  even  on  a  suburban  basis,  it  is  evident  that  in 
future  years  there  will  be  a  much  greater  population  than  now  exists. 

We  have  considered  the  rate  of  growth  of  Chicago  from  various  viewpoints, 
notably  the  density  of  its  population,  and  have  compared  its  growth  with  that 
of  other  metropolitan  districts.  There  is,  of  course,  no  way  of  predicting 
accurately  how  rapid  will  be  the  growth  of  Chicago  in  future  years ;  but 
it  is  a  reasonable  assumption  that  before  many  years  it  will  become  a  city 
of  some  five  or  six  millions  of  population.  It  seems  reasonable  to  infer  that 
the  population  residing  upon  the  area  tributary  to  the  Chicago  River  and  its 
branches  will  ultimately  exceed  both  the  3,000.000  and  4,200,000  estimates 
above  mentioned.  In  other  words,  the  present  dilution  method  will  certainly 
not  alone  for. all  time  take  care  of  the  crude  sewage  of  this  area. 

There  are  several  available  methods  for  the  purification  of  sewage,  depend- 
ing upon  the  degree  of  purification  desired,  as  will  be  noted  beyond  in  connection 
with  the  Calumet  area. 

It  is  not  probable  that  the  sewage  of  the  old  part  of  Chicago  will  ever  be 
purified  by  artificial  means,  as  it  would  be  proportionately  much  more  difficult 
and  expensive  to  deliver  the  sewage  to  suitable  sites  for  purification  than  to 
continue  the  present  dilution  method.  It  is  different  with  the  outlying  dis- 
tricts tributary  to  the  Chicago  River.  In  the  future,  when  these  districts 
become  built  up  so  that  the  population  exceeds  the  limits  above  stated,  the 
installation  of  sewage  purification  works  will  necessarily  follow. 


47 

PROPOSED  CALUMET  CANAL. 

The  more  essential  features  of  this  proposed  canal,  as  obtained  from  local 
officials,  may  be  summarized  as  follows  : 

Location. — The  canal  would  extend  from  a  point  on  the  Little  Calumet  River 
near  Blue  Island,  through  the  Sag  Valley,  and  enter  the  drainage  canal  near 
Sag  Station. 

Territory  tributary. — The  total  drainage  area  of  the  Calumet  River  is  825 
square  miles,  of  which  473  are  in  Indiana.  Within  the  limits  of  the  sanitary 
district  of  Chicago  and  south  of  Eighty-seventh  street,  the  area  is  94.5  square 
miles,  with  a  population  of  about  100,000  in  1900.  It  is  stated  that  the  popula- 
tion has  nearly  doubled  within  the  past  six  years,  and  it  is  expected  to  reach  a 
million  people  or  more  within  a  fairly  short  period,  as  the  conditions  for  a  manu- 
facturing district  are  very  favorable. 

Size. — The  size  of  this  canal,  as  proposed,  is  such  as  to  give  a  flow  of  4,000 
cubic  feet  per  second. 

Reversal  of  flow. — The  natural  flow  of  the  Calumet  River  exceeds  12,500 
cubic  feet  per  second.  It  is  proposed,  if  suitable  legislation  can  be  secured,  to 
construct  a  dam  below  Thorn  Creek,  at  the  southern  boundary  of  the  sanitary 
district,  and  divert  into  Lake  Michigan,  through  a  channel  to  be  built  about  17£ 
miles  east  of  the  State  line,  the  flow  of  this  stream,  with  a  drainage  area  of 
about  587  square  miles.  The  size  of  the  proposed  Calumet  Canal  is  too  small 
to  secure  at  all  times  a  reversal  of  flow  of  the  remaining  portion  of  the  area, 
which  is  about  240  square  miles.  It  is  proposed  to  put  a  controlling  lock  on 
the  canal  east  of  Blue  Island  to  prevent  flood  waters  from  this  lower  area 
entering  the  canal,  at  which  times  sewage  entering  the  river  on  the  lake  side 
of  the  lock  would  go  into  the  lake. 

The  proposed  canal  is  insufficient  to  carry  in  the  future  all  the  storm  flows  of 
the  Sag  Valley  itself.  These  would,  at  least,  in  part,  require  diversion  through 
present  or  other  channels. 

Cost. — The  estimated  cost  of  this  proposed  canal  is  $12,000,000. 

Population  to  be  served. — On  the  assumption  already  stated,  this  canal,  by 
dilution,  would  dispose  of  the  sewage  of  about  1,200,000  people,  not  including 
objectionable  trade  wastes.  This  makes  the  cost  of  sewage  disposal  $10  per 
capita  for  the  entire  future  population,  or  about  $60  for  the  present  population. 
The  sewage  would  for  the  most  part  reach  the  canal  by  gravity  through  the 
Calumet  River,  so  that  the  cost  of  maintenance  would  be  comparatively  small. 

In  passing,  we  may  say  that  the  Calumet  area,  both  in  Illinois  and  Indiana, 
is  certain  to  develop  rapidly,  and  its  population  will  eventually  far  exceed  the 
above  figure. 

RELATION    OF    SEWAGE   DISPOSAL   FOR   THE   CALUMET    AREA    TO    THE    WATER    SUPPLY    OF 

CHICAGO. 

For  the  reasons  above  stated  in  connection  with  the  reversal  of  flow,  the  sani- 
tary effect  upon  Lake  Michigan  water  at  the  Hyde  Park  intake  and  vicinity  of 
this  proposed  Calumet  Canal  would  not  be  nearly  as  effective  as  that  of  the  main 
canal  for  the  Chicago  River  territory  and  neighboring  intakes.  This  fact  is 
important  in  connection  with  the  degree  of  sewage  purification  required  by  arti- 
ficial purification  works  to  give  a  sanitary  effect  equal  to  that  of  the  proposed 
canal. 

There  seems  to  be  no 'doubt  that  at  times  the  sewage  entering  the  Calumet 
River  under  present  conditions  from  this  district  pollutes  the  lake  water 
from  the  Hyde  Park  intake  crib.  It  may  pollute  the  water  at  other  intakes, 
but  our  evidence  is  not  conclusive.  In  the  future,  when  the  Calumet  area  is 
built  up,  it  is  possible  that  intake  cribs  may  be  built  nearer  to  the  mouth  of 
the  Calumet  River  than  is  the  Hyde  Park  intake. 

In  view  of  the  fact  that  the  proposed  Calumet  Canal  can  not  keep  all 
sewage  out  of  Lake  Michigan  at  times  of  heavy  rainfall,  it  is  important  to 
note  that  the  water  supply  of  this  section  of  Chicago  will  eventually  have 
to  be  purified  by  modern  filtration  works.  This  can  be  done  at  moderate  cost, 
and  it  will  be  the  cheapest  and  best  solution  of  this  problem  to  filter  the 
water  supply  of  this  district  and  to  purify  the  sewage  to  such  a  degree  that 
the  effluent  will  be  fairly  clear  and  nonputrescible,  that  is,  free  from  dis- 
agreeable odors.  With  additional  expense  the  sewage  effluent  (of  the  quality 
just  stated)  can  be  given  a  supplementary  purification,  making  it  practically 
free  of  bacteria  by  treating  it  with  a  germicide  or  by  filtering  it  according  to 
water  purification  practice. 


48 


Under  existing  conditions  we  are  firmly  of  the  opinion  that  all  the  purifi- 
cation required  of  the  sewage  of  the  Calumet  district  is  to  make  it  fairly  clear 
and  nonputrescible. 

AVAILABLE     METHODS    OF    SEWAGE    DISPOSAL    OTHER    THAN    THAT    OF    THE    DILUTION 
METHOD  PROPOSED  FOR  THE  CALUMET  AREA. 

The  degree  of  purification  of  sewage  by  various  forms  of  treatment  differs 
naturally  under  different  local  conditions,  but  from  general  experience  approxi- 
mate results  may  be  compared,  substantially  as  follows : 


Method. 

Percentage  purification. 

Suspended 
matter. 

Organic 
matter. 

Bacteria. 

Fine  screens  (30-mesh  or  finer)  

IB 
65 
65 

85 
85-90 
85-90 
95-99 

10 

30 
30 
50 
65-70 
65-70 
90-98 

15 
65 
65 

85 
80-85 
90-95 
98-99 

Sedimentation 

Septic  treatment  

Chemical  precipitation 

Contact  niters  a  

Sprinkling  filters'''                     .  . 

Intermittent  sand  filters  « 

a  The  figures  for  the  last  three  forms  of  treatment  are  on  the  assumption  that  the 
sewage  is  given  some  form  of  preparatory  treatment  before  it  is  applied  to  the  filters, 
and  that  with  the  sprinkling  filters  the  effluent  is  allowed  to  settle. 

It  is  to  be  stated  that  none  of  the  first  four  treatments  above  tabulated  will 
by  itself  give  a  nonputrescible  effluent.  Therefore  they  can  be  used  here  only 
in  connection  with  some  form  of  filtration. 

For  large  works  filters  can  be  more  economically  operated  if  the  sewage  is  first 
clarified  in  part,  as  stated  in  connection  with  the  above  summary.  The  most 
appropriate  method  for  this  preparatory  or  preliminary  treatment  is  considered 
by  most  sanitary  engineers  in  this  country  and  abroad  to  consist  of  septic  tanks, 
which  is  the  expression  applied  to  sedimentation  basins  in  which  the  deposited 
sludge  is  allowed  to  accumulate  to  undergo  bacterial  action. 

There  are  several  forms  of  filters,  the  most  widely  known  of  which,  in  this 
country,  is  the  intermittent  sand  filter,  sometimes  mentioned  as  the  so-called 
"'  land  treatment "  for  sewage  disposal.  This  method  was  considered  in  1886-87 
for  the  entire  Chicago  area  and  reported  upon  unfavorably  on  account  of  its 
being  more  expensive  than  the  adopted  method  of  dilution. 

Local  experiences. — We  find  that  a  feeling  appears  to  prevail  among  some 
persons  at  Chicago  against  land  treatment  of  sewage,  due  perhaps  to  the  unsuc- 
cessful operation  of  the  sewage  farm  at  Pullman,  which  is  situated  wTithin  this 
Calumet  area. 

We  are  familiar  with  the  facts  and  experiences  at  Pullman,  and  are  clearly 
of  the  opinion  that  they  are  not  necessarily  a  criterion  for  the  Calumet  area. 
This  opinion  is  based  partly  upon  the  small  size  of  particles  of  the  soil  at  the 
Pullman  farm,  and  partly  upon  the  fact  that  the  farm  was  devoted  principally 
to  agricultural  rather  than  sewage  purification  purposes. 

Sand  areas. — We  have  examined  the  tracts  of  lake  sand  which  are  found  in 
Indiana  and  to  a  limited  extent  in  the  township  of  Thornton.  111.  The  latter 
areas  are  too  limited  in  extent  and  too  shallow  to  be  considered  for  present 
purposes.  The  only  areas  of  suitable  porous  sand  for  land  treatment  of  the 
Calumet  sewage  are  in  Indiana. 

\Ve  have  collected  five  samples  of  this  sand  for  mechanical  analysis,  and 
have  obtained  the  results  as  to  size  of  sand  grains.  Representative  results 
average  substantially  as  follows  : 

Millimeters. 

Effective  size 0. 15 

Uniformity  coefficient 1.  40 

If  we  disregard  the  State  boundary  line,  a  large  tract  of  sand  of  a  suitable 
character  is  available  for  the  disposal  of  the  sewage  of  this  district.  The  best 
area  lies  between  the  Little  Calumet  and  the  Grand  Calumet  rivers,  and  extends 
oast  of  Hammond  for  many  miles. 

Within  the  past  six  or  eight  years  great  strides  have  been  taken  in  the  field 
of  sewage  purification  in  connection  with  works  of  wrholly  artificial  construction. 
We  refer  particularly  to  filters  of  coarse,  firm  material,  such  as  broken  stone, 


49 

slag,  or  clinker,  and  usually  spoken  of  as  "  coarse-grained  filters,"  as  distin- 
guished from  fine-grained  sand  filters. 

Coarse-grained  filters  are  of  two  types,  spoken  of  as  "  contact  filters  "  and 
"  sprinkling  filters,"  according  to  the  method  by  which  the  sewage  is  applied  to 
them.  These  filters  produce  an  effluent  which  will  not  putrify  when  they  are 
operated  at  a  rate  far  greater  than  that  which  is  possible  for  sand  filters. 

We  shall  describe  briefly  each  of  these  types  of  sewage-purification  methods 
and  state  their  approximate  cost  of  construction  on  suitable  sites  for  the  Calu- 
met area,  based  upon  unit  prices  in  accordance  with  experience  elsewhere. 

An  outline  is  first  required,  however,  of  the  intercepting  sewers,  pumping 
stations,  and  rising  mains  necessary  to  collect  and  deliver  the  sewage  to  the 
filter  sites,  of  which  there  are  several  available. 

Regardless  of  the  particular  kind  of  filter  found  most  suitable  for  the  Calu- 
met area,  there  are  a  number  of  features  common  to  all  methods,  and  which 
may  be  stated  as  follows : 

Separate  sewers, — With  the  adoption  of  sewTage  filters  for  this  district  we 
are  clearly  of  the  opinion  that  it  would  be  advisable  hereafter  to  build  a 
separate  system  of  sewers  for  domestic  sewage  only.  Some,  if  not  all,  of  the 
existing  main  sewers  could  be  used  for  the  removal  of  storm  and  surface  water 
only,  and  new  sewers  parallel  them  for  sewage  removal ;  or,  some  of  the  exist- 
ing sewers  could  be  utilized  for  sewage  removal,  requiring  new  structures  for 
storm-water  removal.  Trade  wastes  should  be  excluded  from  all  sewers.  We 
have  obviously  not  included  in  the  cost  of  purifying  the  sewTage  any  expense 
for  the  main  sewers  or  laterals  to  collect  it  and  deliver  it  to  the  interceptors. 

Volume  of  sewage. — We  have  assumed  that  the  sewage  of  this  district  will 
approximate  130  gallons  per  capita  daily  on  an  average.  With  a  population  of 
1,200,000  the  total  volume  of  sewage  would  therefore  be  about  156,000,000  gallons 
daily.  We  have  also  allowed  for  ground-water  seepage  up  to  1,000  gallons  per 
square  mile  per  day. 

Interceptors. — For  purposes  of  making  approximate  but  liberal  estimates  of 
cost  of  purifying  the  sewage  of  this  district,  we  have  prepared  sketches  showing 
the  intercepting  sewers  which  will  be  required  in  order  to  collect  the  sewage  of 
the  district  at  four  or  more  centrally  located  pumping  stations.  We  have 
assumed  that  these  intercepting  sewers  will  be  built  of  concrete,  and  when 
flowing  full  have  a  capacity  of  250  gallons  per  twenty-four  hours  for  each  person 
resident  upon  the  area  tributary  to  the  interceptor.  When  full,  these  inter- 
ceptors have  been  assumed  to  have  a  velocity  of  2.5  feet  per  second.  We  have 
also  assumed,  after  excluding  that  portion  of  the  Calumet  district  reached  by 
extreme  high  water  in  the  lake,  that  on  an  average  the  population  contributing 
to  the  four  or  more  pumping  stations  would  be  about  20  to  25  persons  per  acre. 
On  this  basis  the  length  and  size  of  the  necessary  intercepting  sewers  have  been 
obtained. 

Pumping  stations. — For  convenience  we  have  located  four  main  pumping 
stations  near  Riverdale,  Harvey,  South  Hammond,  and  South  Chicago.  There 
will  be  required,  when  the  district  is  built  up  to  the  extent  herein  considered, 
a  total  pumping  capacity  of  about  340,000,000  gallons  daily,  including  necessary 
reserve  capacity  at  each  station. 

Septic  tanks. — Regardless  of  the  type  of  filter  adopted,  the  sewage  would  be 
screened  at  the  pumping  stations,  and  then  flow  through  septic  tanks  having  a 
capacity  of  eight  hours'  flow  on  an  average.  These  tanks  would  be  about  12  to 
15  feet  deep,  built  of  concrete,  and  arranged  in  compartments,  so  as  to 
facilitate  septic  action  on  the  deposited  sludge,  but  without  such  action  taking 
place  in  the  flowing  sewage  itself.  Owing  to  the  severe  winter  climate  in  this 
vicinity,  it  is  our  opinion  that  it  would  be  wise  to  cover  these  tanks. 

Of  the  solid  matters  in  suspension  in  the  sewage  about  (>5  per  cent  would 
deposit  in  the  septic  tanks,  and  of  these  deposited  solid  matters  about  one-half 
would  be  liquified  and  gasified  by  bacterial  decomposition. 

The  sludge,  which  would  be  removed  at  intervals  of  once  a  year  or  so  from  the 
tanks,  is  estimated  to  contain  about  85  per  cent  water  and  to  amount  to  about  2 
cubic  yards  per  1,000,000  gallons.  Bacterial  action  converts  this  sludge  to  a 
practically  inert  mass  which  can  be  pumped  in  thin  layers  on  to  adjoining  land 
and  allowed  to  dry. 

This  is  the  form  of  preliminary  treatment  in  use  in  some  40  places  in  this 
country,  including  Plainfield,  N.  J.,  Saratoga,  N.  Y.,  Mansfield,  Ohio,  Cham- 
paign, 111.,  etc.  It  is  the  preliminary  step  in  the  works  under  construction  at 
Columbus,  Ohio,  after  elaborate  tests  of  different  methods  were  made  for  a 


50 

period  of  nearly  one  year.  It  has  also  bj?on  adopted  recently  at  Baltimore,  Md., 
Reading,  Pa.,  and  Waterbury.  Conn.,  and  has  been  recently  proposed  for  Pat- 
erson,  N.  J.,  in  a  somewhat  modified  form. 

This  form  of  preliminary  treatment  has  been  and  is  now  extensively  used  in 
Europe  with  satisfactory  results  where  the  tanks  are  built  and  operated  to 
meet  local  conditions  as. to  volume  and  strength  of  sewage,. 

The  odors  from  large  open  septic  tanks  are  seldom  noticeable  a  few  hundred 
feet  away.  Under  good  management  a  septic  effluent  can  be  applied  to  sprin- 
kling filters  so  that  no  objectionable  odors  should  be  carried  one-quarter  of  a 
mile. 

The  cost  of  building  and  operating  septic  tanks  would  be  substantially  the 
same  for  all  filter  projects,  and  is  considered  under  each  as  a  common  factor. 

INTERMITTENT    SAND  FILTERS. 

This  well-known  method  consists  of  applying  the  partially  clarified  sewage 
coming  from  the  septic  tanks  to  areas  of  porous  sand,  below  the  surface  of  which 
at  depths  of  from  3  to  5  feet  are  underdrains  of  open-jointed  pipe  to  con- 
vey the  purified  sewage  to  the  nearest  water  course.  The  sewage  is  applied  only 
at  intervals  of  once  a  day  or  so  to  a  depth  of  perhaps  6  inches.  Between  appli- 
cations the  sand  layer  is  allowed  to  drain  so  that  its  pores  may  fill  Avith  air, 
This  aeration  of  the  pores  of  the  sand  allows  bacterial  processes  to  convert 
the  organic  matter  to  a  large  extent  to  harmless  mineral  matter.  The  effluent 
is  practically  free  of  noticeable  suspended  matter  and  objectionable  organisms 
and  can  be  discharged  directly  into  the  nearest  water  course. 

This  method  is  now  in  successful  use  in  40  to  50  places  in  this  country  where 
porous  sand  areas  are  available.  It  serves  a  total  population  of  about  350,000 
people.  Well-known  plants  are  to  be  found  at  Framingham,  Brocton,  Clinton, 
and  Worcester,  Mass. ;  Pawtucket  and  Woonsocket,  R.  I. ;  Meriden  and  New 
Britain,  Conn.:  Saratoga,  N.  Y.,  etc.  • 

.•in  time  to  time  it  is  necessary  to  rake,  harrow,  or  plow  the  surface  of 
intermittent  sand  filters  and  to  remove  the  scum  which  slowly  accumulates 
there.  At  intervals  it  is  necessary  to  scrape  off  several  inches  of  the  upper  por- 
tion of  the  sand  layer  when  it  is  found  that  they  are  so  clogged  that  harrowing 
and  plowing  no  longer  prevents  the  surface  from  remaining  covered  with 
sewage. 

With  crude  sewage  it  appears  from  Massachusetts  evidence,  especially  from 
the  tests  conducted  for  a  period  of  nineteen  years  at  the  Lawrence  Experiment 
Station,  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  provide  1  acre  of  intermittent  sand  filters 
for  each  500  persons  connected  with  the  sewers.  When  the  sewage  is  given  a 
preliminary  treatment  in  septic  tanks  and  when  the  filters  are  operated  under 
intelligent  supervision  the  area  may  be  reduced  so  as  to  provide  1  acre  per 
1,000  persons. 

The  most  suitable  natural  site  for  sand  filters  for  the  Calumet  area  is  to  be 
found  in  the  State  of  Indiana,  between  the  Little  Calumet  and  the  Grand 
Calumet  rivers,  east  of  the  city  of  Hammond. 

It  is  possible  to  build  artificial  sand  filters  within  the  Calumet  district,  but 
the  cost  would  be  much  greater  than  for  any  of  the  projects  considered  in  this 
report. 

Based  upon  our  knowledge  of  these  filters  elsewhere,  and  without  considering 
inter-State  complications,  we  estimate  that  the  cost  of  installing  and  operating 
such  a  plant,  with  its  various  appurtenances.  East  of  Hammond,  and  of  a 
capacity  of  about  180,000,000  gallons  daily  to  serve  a  population  of  1,200,000 
people,  would  be  as  follows : 

Esliniated  cost  of  constructing  sand  filter  plant  <r/t<l  (ti'innrtemuiccK. 

Intercepting  sewers,  pumping  stations,  and  appurtenances,  including 

a  daily  capacity  of  340,000,000  gallons,  and  rising  mains $5,070,000 

Septic  tanks,  60,000,000  gallons  capacity,  covered,  including  sludge- 
disposal  facilities 950.000 

Intermittent  sand  filters.  1,200  acres,  with  distributors,  drains,  office, 

laboratory,  etc 3.  600,  000 


9,  620,  000 
Contingencies  and  supervision,  15  per  cent 1.443,000 


Total 11,063,000 


51 

Annual  cost  of  operation. 

Pumping,  fuel,  labor,  and  repairs $300,000 

Supervision,  analytical  and  clerical  assistants,  etc 25,000 

Care  of  septic  tanks,  including  sludge  disposal 3G,  000 

Care  of  sand  filters 480,  000 

Supplies  and  miscellanies 25,000 


866,  000 

Capitalizing  the  operating  expenses  at  5  per  cent  per  annum  there  is  obtained 
$17,320,000,  which,  when  added  to  the  estimated  construction  cost,  makes  a  total 
sum  of  $28,383,000  for  the  sand-filter  project. 

CONTACT  FILTERS. 

These  filters  consist  of  beds  of  broken  stone,  slag,  or  cinders,  placed  in  uncov- 
ered basins  to  a  depth  of  from  3  to  5  feet.  The  size  of  material  ranges  from 
about  one- fourth  to  1  inch. 

The  filters  are  ordinarily  operated  upon  the  fill  and  draw  plan,  that  is.  the 
gate  on  the  outlet  pipe  is  closed  until  the  voids  of  the  bed  are  filled  wih  sewage 
from  the  septic  tanks.  After  filling,  the  filters  are  allowed  to  stand  full  for  an 
hour  or  so,  then  the  sewage  is  allowed  slowly  to  drain  out,  and  this  cycle  of 
operation  is  repeated  once  or  twice  a  day. 

When  the  filtering  material  is  drained  the  voids  fill  with  air,  and  it  is  during 
these  periods  of  draining  that  bacterial  processes  accomplish  the  purification  of 
the  organic  matter,  which  to  a  large  degree  is  lodged  upon  the  surfaces  of  the 
filtering  material  as  the  sewage  is  slowly  withdrawn  from  the  bed.  The  rates 
of  filling  and  drawing  the  beds  may  be  satisfactorily  controlled  by  a  number  of 
automatic  devices  on  the  market  and  which  are  in  successful  use  in  a  number 
of  places. 

Contact  filters  are  an  English  adaptation  of  studies  made  some  fifteen  years 
ago  upon  the  gravel  filters  by  the  Massachusetts  State  board  of  health  at  the 
Lawrence  Experiment  Station.  These  studies  were  begun  about  thirteen  years 
ago  at  London.  As  an  outcome  of  these  and  numerous  other  investigations, 
contact  filters  have  been  adopted  and  are  in  successful  use  for  dozens  of  Eng- 
lish cities,  the  largest  of  which  is  Manchester,  with  a  population  of  about 
<300,000. 

In  this  country  contact  filters  have  been  installed  for  a  dozen  or  more  small 
cities  and  numerous  institutions.  Perhaps  the  best  known  plants  are  at 
Plainfield,  N.  J.,  Mansfield,  Ohio,  and  Charlotte,  N.  C.  They  are  especially 
applicable  to  projects  where  only  a  small  amount  of  head  is  available  and 
where  pumping  would  be  required  for  sprinkling  filters. 

For  large  projects,  and  where  pumping  is  not  a  factor,  recent  experiences 
with  sprinkling  filters  show  that  as  a  rule  they  are  more  economical.  Notwith- 
standing this,  contact  filters  have  served  and  will  serve  a  useful  purpose  in  the 
field  of  sewage  disposal  in  this  country.  There  convenience  of  operation  makes 
them  especially  suitable  for  small  installations. 

Many  contact-filter  plants  have  their  beds  arranged  in  terraces  so  that  the 
sewage  may  be  passed  successively  through  two  or  three  filters.  There  are  a 
number  of  advantages  of  this  arrangement,  but  it  is  not  applicable  to  the  Calu- 
met district,  owing  to  the  level  area  of  the  available  sites.  One  of  the  advan- 
tages of  the  double  and  triple  contact  filters  is  that  they  may  be  operated  from 
below  during  winter  weather  and  thus  guard  against  reductions  in  the  rate  of 
filtration  due  to  freezing. 

The  most  available  and  suitable  local  sites  are :  A  tract  west  of  Harvey  and 
between  the  Illinois  Central  and  Rock  Island  railroads;  a  tract  west  of 
Hammond  and  the  local  branch  of  the  Fort  Wayne  Railroad;  and  a  tract 
between  lakes  Calumet  and  Wolf. 

As  to  the  rate  of  filtration,  we  have  assumed  that  contact  filters  should  be 
5  feet  in  depth  and  that  they  would  satisfactorily  purify  the  effluent  from 
septic  tanks  at  the  rate  of  600,000  gallons  per  acre  per  twenty-four  hours.  This 
means  that  1  acre  of  contact  filters  should  be  provided  for  every  4,000  per- 
sons connected  with  the  sewers. 

The  effluent  from  contact  filters  operated  under  these  conditions  would  be 
ordinarily  free  from  objectionable  amounts  of  suspended  matter,  and  the 


52 

amount  of  organic  matter  would  be  so  reduced  that  it  would  not  putrefy 
upon  standing.  On  an  average  about  15  to  20  per  cent  of  the  bacteria  in  the 
crude  sewage  would  be  present  in  the  effluent.  It  would  not  be  improper  to 
discharge  such  an  effluent  as  it  came  from  the  filters  directly  into  the  nearest 
w.Mt.1!'  course. 

The  amount  of  attendance  required  for  contact  filters  is  not  great,  and  is 
covered  mainly  by  the  necessary  gatemen,  analysts,  and  foremen.  At  inter- 
vals of  all  the  material  would  have  to  be  removed  from  the  filters,  washed,  and 
replaced. 

The  approximate  cost  of  building  and  operating  a  contract-filter  plant  with 
all  needed  appurtenances  of  a  capacity  of  about  180,000,000  gallons  daily  to 
serve  1,200,000  people  may  be  estimated  as  follows : 

Estimated  coxt  of  constructing  contact-filter  plant  and  ai>/>urtenauces. 

Intercepting  sewers,  pumping  stations,  and  appurtenances,  including 

a  daily  capacity  of  340,000,000  gallons,  and  rising  mains $3,  300,  000 

Septic  tanks,  60,000,000  gallons'  capacity,  covered,  including  sludge, 
disposal  facilities 950,000 

Contact  filters,  300  acres,  with  all  piping,  appurtenances,  office,  lab- 
oratory, etc  _  6,000,000 


10.  250,  000 
Contingencies  and  supervision,  15  per  cent 1,537,  50Q 

Total 11,  787,  500 

Annual  cost  of  operations. 

Pumping,  fuel,  labor,  and  repairs $200,000 

Supervision,  analytical,  and  clerical  assistants 30,000 

Care  of  septic  tanks,  including  sludge  disposal 36.  000 

Care  of  contact   filters 200,000 

Supplies    and   miscellanies- _• 25,000 

Total 551,000 

Capitalizing  the  operating  expenses  at  5  per  cent  per  annum  there  is  obtained 
$11,020,000,  which  when  added  to  the  estimated  construction  cost  makes  a 
total  sum  of  $22,807,500  for  the  contact-filter  project. 

SPRINKLING    FILTERS. 

Sprinkling  filters  differ  from  contact  filters  principally  in  the  method  of 
application  of  sewage,  which  in  our  northern  climates  is  discharged  upon  them 
in  the  form  of  spray  from  a  series  of  fixed  sprinkling  nozzles  placed  about 
12  to  15  feet  apart.  The  filters  are  usually  deeper  and  of  somewhat  coarser 
material  than  contact  filters. 

These  filters  also  are  an  English  adaptation  of  the  Lawrence  investigations 
with  gravel  filters  some  fifteen  years  ago.  The  English  studies  began  at 
Salford  in  1892  and  have  resulted  in  the  adoption  of  this  form  of  filter  for 
many  of  the  principal  cities  in  England,  the  largest  of  which  is  the  metro- 
politan district  of  Birmingham,  with  a  population  of  over  900,000.  Some  of 
these  filters  have  been  in  successful  practical  operation  for  more  than  eight 
years.  On  the  Continent  this  method  is  being  adopted  for  portions  of  the 
suburbs  of  Paris  and  Berlin. 

In  this  country  this  method  has  been  studied  with  care  at  Lawrence,  Mass. ; 
Columbus,  Ohio ;  Boston,  Mass.,  and  Waterbury,  Conn.  *  Filters  of  this  type  are 
now  under  construction  at  Columbus,  Ohio,  and  Reading,  Pa.  They  have  been 
recently  adopted  for  Baltimore,  Md. ;  West  Chester,  Pa. ;  Washington,  Pa.,  and 
Waterbury,  Conn.  They  have  been  recommended  for  use  also  at  Paterson,  N.  J. 

The  important  element  of  aeration  is  secured  in  sprinkling  filters  partly  by 
applying  the  liquid  as  a  spray  and  partly  through  the  use  of  coarse  material 
with  voids  of  a  size  so  that  there  is  a  vertical  circulation  of  air  through  the 
filtering  material  at  all  times. 

Suspended  mineral  and  organic  matters  and  some  of  the  dissolved  organic 
matters  are  retained  upon  the  surface  of  the  filtering  material  as  the  liquid 


53 

•s  in  thin  films  over  the  surface  of  the  particles.  Bacterial  activities  reduce 
rganic  matter  to  a  material  degree,  and  from  time  to  time  the  remaining 
material  cracks  and  peels  and  passes  through  the  filter  bed  to  the  bottom. 
ler  to  be  able  to  remove  this  accumulated  matter,  it  is  necessary  to  provide 
e  bottoms  for  these  filters.  Filters  of  this  type  have  been  in  successful 
•>r  more  than  eight  years  without  cleaning,  and  it  is  believed  that  under 
ible  conditions  cleaning  is  not  required  oftener  than  once  in  ten  or  fifteen 

:  S. 

amount  of  suspended  matter  in  the  effluent  of  sprinkling  filters  due  to 

unloading  of  stored  material  is  sufficient  to  require  passing  the  effluent 

:gh  settling  basins,  holding  about  two  hours'  flow,  before  discharging  into- 

•learest  water  course.    The  settled  effluent,  of  satisfactory  appearance  and 

ts  organic  matter  so  reduced  that  it  will  not  putrefy,  usually  contains  less 

n  10  pei1  cent  of  the  bacteria  in  the  crude  sewage. 

re  is  a  considerable  range  in  size  of  broken  stone  and  in  depth  of  material 

;is  adopted  in  various  large  plants  now  built  or  building.     Avoiding  extremes, 

,   be  stated  that  the  depths  average  about  7  feet,  and  the  size  of  material 

es  from  about  1  to  1\   inches,  mean  diameter.     We  have  assumed  these 

••"<  for  sprinkling  filters  for  the  Calumet  area,  to  be  built  of  broken  stone 

k'tpe  sites  already  mentioned  for  contact  filters,  namely,  west  of  Harvey,  west 

ninond,  and  between  lakes  Calumet  and  Wolf. 

have  carefully  considered  the  climatic  conditions  at  Chicago  and  com- 

il    them   with   temperatures   where   practical    experiences   with    sprinkling 

1m  ve  been  obtained..   There  is  no  trouble  from  the  freezing  of  the  sprink- 

ozzles  through  which  sewage  is  applied  under  a  head  of  G  or  7  feet.    Dur- 

'»ero  weather  some  frozen  sewage  accumulates  on  the  surface  of  the  filter 

tt  such  times  it  is  necessary  to  have  some  reserve  area.    We  have  assumed 

under  these  local  conditions  one  acre  of  sprinkling  filters  should  be  pro- 

i!  for  every  15,000  people  connected  with  the  sewers,  making  a  rate  ordi- 

of   about  2,250,000   gallons  per   acre  per  twenty-four   hours.     As  was 

istrated.  at  Columbus,   such  rates  for   several  weeks  at  a  time  may  be 

led   and    still    obtain    a    satisfactory   nonputrescible    effluent.      This    rate, 

;sod  in  persons  served  per  acre-foot  of  sprinkling  filter  material,  is  only 

'   one-half  of  -that  provided  for  at  Columbus,  Ohio,  and  one-third  of  that 

oral  plants  in  England. 

approximate  cost  of  building  and  operating  a  sprinkling  filter  plant  with 
iMled  appurtenances,  of  a  capacity  of  180,000,000  gallons  daily,  to  serve  a 
-.illation  of  1,200,000  may  be  estimated  as  follows: 

Umated  cost  of  constructing  sprinkling  filter  plant  and,  appurtenances. 

rcepting  sewers,  pumping  stations  and  appurtenances,  including 
lily  capacity  of  340,000,000  gallons,  and  rising  mains  --------  $3,  300,  000 

tanks,  60,000,000  gallons'  capacity,  covered,  including  sludge- 
•osal  facilities  ____________________________________________        950,  000 

-ling  filters,  80  acres,  with  all  appurtenances,  office,  laboratory, 
__________________________________________________________     3,  600,  000 

ling  basins,  15,000,000  gallons'  capacity—          ---------------        200,000 

8,  050,  000 
ttingencies  and  supervision,  15  per  cent—  1,  207,  500 

Total  ____________  :  ______________________  -  _________     9,257,500 

•*  Annual  cost  of  operation. 


Pumping,  fuel,  labor,  and  repairs  -------------------- 

rvision,  analytical  and  clerical  assistants—  30,  OOC 

of  septic  and  settling  tanks,  including  sludge  disposal^  -------          54,  000 

of  sprinkling  filters  _________  110,000 

ies   and   miscellanies  _________ 

Total  ___________________________________________________          419>  00(> 

vitalizing  the  operating  expenses  at  5  per  cent  per  annum,  there  is  obtained 
',000,  which  when  added  to  the  estimated  construction  cost  makes  a  total 
•f  $17,637,500  for  the  sprinkling  filter  project. 


54 

CONCLUSION. 
«. 

In  recapitulating  the  substance  of  the  foregoing  inquiry  and  referring  spe- 
cifically to  your  instructions,  summarized  at  the  outset,  we  conclude  as  follows: 

1.  Tho  examination   into  the  sanitary  situation  at  Chicago,   so  far  as  it  is 
affected  by  sewage  disposal,  revealed  that  since  removing  the  sewage  through 
the  drainage  canal  the  appearance  of  the  water  of  the  Chicago  River  has  shown 
marked    improvement.     As   regards   the   hygienic   quality   of   the   public   water 
supply  there  has  also  been  an  improvement,  due  to  the  progressive  elimination 
of  sewage  from  the  lake,  which  elimination  should  be  completed  within  a  few 
years. 

2.  The  latest  conclusions  of  sanitary  engineers  as  to  the  amount  of  dilution 
which  is  required  to  make  sewage  inoffensive,  are  that  a  dilution  of  3J  cubic 
feet  per  second  for  each  1.000  persons  connected  with  the  sewers,  as  provided 
for  in  the  enactment  of  the  Illinois  legislature  in  1889,  is  as  low  a  figure  as  it 
is  now  possible  to  state.     We  believe  that  with  the  elimination  of  objectionable 
trade  wastes  and  the  occasional  dredging  of  the  river,  this  amount  of  dilution 
will  be  sufficient  to  prevent  offensiveness. 

3.  The  extension  of  the  dilution  method  to  the  outlying  territory  is  not  the 
only  way  t:>  preserve  the  lives  and  health  of  the  people  of  Chicago.   The  applica- 
tion ef  this  method  with  flows  of  10.000  and  14,000  cubic  feet  per  second,  respec- 
tively, for  the  area  tributary  to  the  present  drainage  canal  will  serve  populations 
not   exceeding   ,",.noo,t><)0   and   4.2(10.000,    respectively.     For   greater   populations, 
other  methods  of  sewage  disposal  will  be  required. 

4.  For  the  Calumet  area,  as  well  as  other  districts,  there  are  several  methods 
for  the  disposal  of  sewage,  as  effective  as  the  present  method  of  dilution  in  pre- 
venting the  pollution  of  the  lake  waters. 

5.  All  of  these  methods  involve  intercepting  sewers  and  pumping  stations  to 
collect  and  deliver  the  sewage  at  suitable  sites.     Septic  tanks  are  used  for  par- 
tially clarifying  the  sewage,  which  may  then  be  applied  to  any  one  of  three 
methods  of  niters,  viz,  intermittent  sand  niters,  contact  filters,  and  sprinkling 
filters. 

All  of  these  filters,  if  well  built  and  well  managed,  remove  the  suspended  and 
organic  matters  so  that  the  effluents  are  practically  clear  and  are  nonputrescible. 
The  removal  of  bacteria  by  these  three  types  of  filters  averages  at  least  98,  80, 
and  90  per  cent,  respectively.  Such  effluents  may  be  discharged  directly  into 
any  of  the  water  courses  of  the  Calumet  region. 

n.  The  approximate  total  costs,  liberally  estimated,  without  the  preparation 
of  detailed  plans,  for  a  population  of  1,200,000,  are  as  follows  : 

A. — Intermittent  sand  filters. 

Construction    $11,  OG3,  000 

Annual  cost  of  operation,  $866,000,  capitalized  at  5  per  cent 17,320,000 


28,  383,  000 

B. — Contact  filters. 
Construction 11,  787,  500 

Annual  cost  of  operation,  $551,000,  capitalized  at  5  per  cent 11,  020,  000 


22,  807.  500 

filters. 
Construction  9,  257,  500 

Annual  cost  of  operation,  $419,000,  capital  at  5  per  cent 8,380,000 


17,  637,  500 

The  present  population  on  the  Calumet  area  of  the  sanitary  district  being  less 
than  200,000  would  naturally  require  but  a  portion  of  the  cost  of  estimated 
works  and  of  their  operation  to  be  expended  at  the  outset. 

Of  the  available  methods  of  disposing  of  the  sewage  of  the  Calumet  area, 
other  than  by  dilution,  the  sprinkling  filter  method,  being  the  cheapest,  both  in 
cost  of  construction  and  of  operation,  and  accomplishing  an  adequate  degree  of 
purification,  is  clearly  the  most  advantageous  one. 

Very  respectfully,  RUDOLPH  HERING, 

GEORGE  W.  FULLER. 

o 


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